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FOR RELEASE: April 17, 2008

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Amethyst Saxophone Quartet Captures
Two National Awards

The Amethyst Saxophone Quartet, comprising Northwestern students Johnny Salinas, Sean Hurlburt, Luke Gay, and Zachary Pfau, has captured two prestigious national awards.  The Quartet has been named winner of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Collegiate Chamber Music Competition and the 62nd Annual Coleman Chamber Ensemble Competition. The Coleman has never before been won by a Northwestern ensemble.

The MTNA National Chamber Music Competition took place on Saturday, March 29, during the 2008 MTNA National Conference.  As First Prize winner, the Quartet received a cash prize, offered by the Allen I. McHose Scholarship Fund, and performed on the Winners’ Concert on March 30. 

Established in 1946, the Coleman Chamber Ensemble Competition is one of the oldest chamber music competitions in the United States, with former winners including the Tokyo Quartet, the Pacifica Quartet, and Eighth Blackbird.  The 2008 competition took place on April 12 in Pasadena, with the finalist pool including ensembles from the Eastman School of Music, Florida State University, Texas Tech University, University of Houston, and the University of Minnesota, in addition to Amethyst.  Amethyst received the Coleman-Saunderson Prize for Woodwinds and Brass, comprising a cash award and an appearance on the winner’s concert on April 13.

The members of the Amethyst Quartet are students of Frederick L. Hemke.

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