Steve Gorgos/University Photography

Adrianne Ngam

Cellist and Cornell student Adrianne Ngam won the fifth annual Cornell Concerto Competition Dec. 14 in Barnes Hall. She will be featured in a March 1 concert with the Cornell Symphony Orchestra.

Ngam performed Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera's Pampeana No. 2, accompanied by Blaise Bryski on piano, in the competition's preliminary and final rounds. Both events were open to the public.

Fourteen students performed concertos on violin, viola, cello, piano, horn and bass during the preliminary round, from which four finalists were selected: Ngam; Daniel Anastasio, piano; Bee-Seon Keum, violin; and Chris Gerig, bass.

Ngam is enrolled in the five-year architecture program in the College of Architecture, Art and Planning. A native of St. Paul, Minn., she has been studying cello since 1997. Her previous competitions include the 2007 Rochester Chamber Music Competition, in which she earned first place; and the 2008 Schubert Club Competition (second place).

An active musician in the Twin Cities, Ngam participated in Minnesota Youth Symphonies, Artaria Chamber Music School, St. Paul District Honors Orchestra and the All-State Orchestra. She is currently studying with cellist John Haines-Eitzen, senior lecturer in performance in Cornell's Department of Music.

Concerto competition judges were conductor and educator Rachel Lauber and classical guitarist Matthew Ardizzone of the School of Music, Theatre and Dance at the University of Michigan.