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ZaRiah Quintet...Killin' it at the semi-finals of Fischoff Chamber Music Competition 2026. GO Team ZaRiah!!

Looking ahead to some of our upcoming engagements these next two months ✨

May 8-10: @fischoffchambermusic South Bend, IN

May 19th: @yale.music New Haven America 250 Pop Up Concert, Beinecke Library 5-6:30pm

May 30th: @waterburysymphony Clark Chamber Music Concert Series, Waterbury, CT 4-5pm

June 14th-27th: @glcmf Shouse Institute Fellows, Southfield, Michigan

Mozart Serenade in C Minor K. 388, Mvt. 1

Here is a clip from our live radio broadcast with @classicalkingfm about a month ago! You can find a link to the full performance on NPR Live Sessions in our bio ✨

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#music #musician #practice #classicalmusicdaily #classical #classicalmusic #classicalmusician #solo #beethoven #orchestra #symphony #philharmonic #excerpt #orchestralexcerpt #audition #practice #proofofpractice #practicing #solo #jazz #musicians #music #chambermusic #woodwind #windquintet #clarinet #flute #frenchorn #bassoon #oboe

06.01.26

Our vlog from an incredible week in South Bend @fischoffchambermusic ❤️✨

It was such an honor to be surrounded by so many inspiring chamber ensembles in a weekend celebrating this art form. We had such an amazing time together, and are so grateful we get to do this. 🫶🏾

Here’s a few clips from the last part of An America@250 Concert Series featuring live audio from @quintetzariah during the concert and footage of both them and @solarisnewmusic performing. 💜🎤

It has been an absolute privilege to be able to organize this concert series and collaborate with so many gifted artists, musicians, and creators. It was such a special experience to be able to help craft a space for artists to say something about our country freely. 🫶🏽🎶

Thank you to everyone that helped me with this, to @yale.music and the @beineckelibrary for helping me bring this to life, and the performers that went for it each concert. An absolute joy. ❤️🙌🏾

As we look over all of the videos from this past weekend to attempt to assemble some version of our usual vlog, we never get tired of hearing this opening! One of the most challenging aspects of shaping our program was navigating the transitions between pieces. Finding ways to reset the scene seamlessly while stepping into entirely new characters in an instant. What we ultimately discovered was that every moment was connected! Each piece flowing naturally into the next, all part of a larger story unfolding together. We are so grateful for this journey and can’t wait to share more. Vlog will be out soon(ish)!!

Congratulations to ZaRiah, winners of the Grand Prize and Wind Gold Medal at the 2026 Fischoff Competition! They join an incredible roster of past winners, including the Miró Quartet, Calidore String Quartet, and Terra String Quartet, YSM’s fellowship quartet-in-residence.

ZaRiah — composed of flutist Ben Smith ’26MM, clarinetist Katelyn Poetker ’26MM, horn player Oved Rico ’25MM ’26MMA, bassoonist AJ Neubert, and oboist Jamison Hillian — is the first wind quintet to win the Grand Prize since 2002. But they’re no strangers to making history: last fall, the ensemble also won the Frances Walton Chamber Music Competition, marking the first time a wind quintet won that competition.

“The competition at Fischoff was unlike anything we’ve ever experienced before. Every time we stepped onto the stage, we felt overwhelmed with gratitude just to be there,” they said. “We want to give special thanks to our mentors at YSM for their unwavering guidance and mentorship.”

Join us in celebrating this extraordinary accomplishment and wishing the ensemble members continued success!

PS — You don’t have to wait long to hear the group in action. ZaRiah is performing alongside piano faculty member Melvin Chen with the Waterbury Symphony Orchestra on May 30.

🎥LIVE FROM FISCHOFF - @quintetzariah Senior Winds Finalists & medalists, coming off stage from a phenomenal final round!!

#fischoffcompetition #chambermusic #winds

ZaRiah × Kansas City 🫶🏾🫶🏾🫶🏾 Pt 2/2

We can't wait until the next time we get to come back! We had such a wonderful time in Kansas City 🥹❤️

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#chambermusic #woodwind #windquintet #kansascity #classicalmusicdaily

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

We had an incredible residency with the ZaRiah Quintet last week!

From a community concert to visits in schools and retirement communities, the Quintet shared the beauty of chamber music with audiences across Kansas City!

Thank you, ZaRiah Quintet, for your artistry, generosity, and talent—we loved having you here!

@quintetzariah @visitkc @kclivearts @zhoubartcenterkc

ZaRiah x Kansas City 🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽 Pt 1/2