Young Performers Career Advancement Program
"I gained incredible insights into the music business and the relationships between all the people involved in producing performances and making a career. I gained a lot more confidence through this knowledge – and excitement to start applying these concepts to forge a unique career path." --Ayano Ninomiya, violinist and 2009 YPCA participant
ANNOUNCING YPCA 2013!
Read the full press release here.
Syabrite5: In 2011, Sybarite5 became the first string quintet selected as a winner of the Concert Artists Guild International Competition in its 60-year history. From Mozart to Radiohead, Sybarite5 has an eclectic repertoire and dynamic performance approach to chamber music performance. Formed at the Aspen Music Festival, Sybarite5 was the first string quintet admitted to the Aspen Advanced String Quartet Studies program in 2008.
Gabriela Martinez has worked with prestigious conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Carl St.Clair, Lawrence Foster, James Gaffigan and Itzhak Perlman, and with a range of organizations including the Chicago, San Francisco, Pacific, Fort Worth and New Jersey symphony orchestras, the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, the Ravinia and Verbier festivals, and the Takács Quartet. Her awards include first prize at the Anton Rubinstein International Piano Competition and a jury discretionary award at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, where she was a semi-finalist. Martinez holds bachelor and master degrees from The Juilliard School and earned her doctorate in Germany with Marco Antonio de Almeida. She joined the Concert Artist Faculty at Kean University in 2008.
Linden String Quartet: Described as “…polished, radiant and incisive…” by The Strad with “…performances of consummate artistry and near-flawless execution” (Classical Voice of North Carolina), the Linden String Quartet was formed in 2008 at the Cleveland Institute of Music and has already enjoyed remarkable success, winning the 2010 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition, taking Grand Prize at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, Coleman-Barstow Prize at the Coleman National Chamber Ensemble Competition and the ProQuartet Prize at the 9th Borciani International String Quartet Competition. The Quartet was also selected recently for the prestigious 2011 A.N. and Pearl G. Barnett Fellowship.
Gabriel Cabezas: Cellist Gabriel Cabezas is the winner of the 15th Annual Sphinx Competition and Sphinx’s 2012 Isaac Stern Award. As a soloist, Cabezas has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, National Symphony of Costa Rica, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra and New World Symphony. As a chamber musician, Cabezas has collaborated with Yo-Yo Ma and has appeared at New York's Bargemusic and Chicago's Music in the Loft, as well as Music@Menlo, the Seattle Chamber Music Festival and Marlboro Music. He is also a founding member of the new Philadelphiabased project ensemble39. Cabezas has supported outreach programs including Midori's Partners in Performance, and Costa Rica's SINEM education program. He is the Dr. Bobby Ellen Kimbel Annual Fellow at the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studies with acclaimed cellist Carter Brey.
About the Program
The Young Performers Career Advancement Program (YPCA) is a program of the APAP Classical Connections initiative designed to support classical musicians in the formative stages of their careers by offering opportunities to meet and work with established presenters, managers, agents and artists.
YPCA participants will attend intensive, specialized seminar activities at APAP|NYC 2013, January 11-15, where they will learn to set goals for longterm career development and create networking resources that last for an entire career. These sessions provide a practical overview of the presenting and touring industry and expert instruction in the development of audience engagement skills.
In addition to free access to APAP|NYC 2013, the world's largest performing arts conference, all YPCA participants will perform at Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall in front of global arts leaders, performing arts presenters, managers, record company representatives and agents.
Through a national partnership developed with the Sphinx Competition, APAP also provides an opportunity for a Sphinx Competition alumni artist or ensemble to participate in the program each year.
YPCA benefits include: 
- Free access to APAP|NYC 2013
- Special YPCA professional development seminars with leading arts professionals
- APAP showcase performance, 5:30 p.m., Monday, January 14, 2013 in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
- Year-long access to national and international performance opportunities
Read reflections from YPCA alumni featured in the Spring 2011 issue of Inside Arts and read the official press release to learn more about the artists selected for YPCA 2012.
If you have questions, please contact Laura Benson, APAP programs manager, at lbenson@artspresenters.org.
Notable YPCA alumni include:
The Classical Connections program is underwritten by the
APAP Classical Connections Endowment.
Photos, top to bottom: Catalyst Quartet, YPCA 2012 artist group, performs at the APAP showcase at Carnegie Hall, by Jacob Belcher; YPCA 2012 participants attend professional development sessions at APAP|NYC, by Juan Padron.