Music on the Hill announces scholarship winners

Two winners will share Music on the Hill’s 2024 scholarship, each receiving a $300 award toward their music study. Soprano Camila Brito of Cumberland and Evelyn Zhang of Providence were selected by the judges’ panel. Along with the financial prize, both will join members of Music on the Hill’s ensemble at the annual concert for elementary students on May 31 at Toll Gate High School, Warwick.

Camila Brito

Camila Brito is an 18-year-old soprano from Cumberland. She studies at Rhode Island College with Lori Phillips. Camila has performed with the All-Eastern Mixed Choir and placed first in the All-State Mixed Choir and second in All-State Treble Choir. In addition, she plays trumpet and has performed with the All-State Band and Rhode Island Philharmonic Wind Ensemble. She served as Tri-M Music Honor Society president as a high school senior.

Evelyn Zhang

Evelyn Zhang, a 16-year-old violinist, studies with Jesse Holstein, following previous studies with EmmaLee Holmes-Hicks. She lives in Providence where she attends the Wheeler School. Evelyn was recognized as one of the awardees at the 2023 American Virtuoso International Music Competition sponsored by the American Society of Musical Excellence, leading to a recent performance at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. She was one of the Gold Prize winners and the recipient of “Best Young String Player” at Virtuoso International Music Awards London in July 2023. Additionally, she was the alternate winner of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School’s concerto competition last year. Evelyn is a member of the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra at New England Conservatory of Music.

The judges’ panel included ensemble members Anne Marie Gabriele, Elisa Kohanski, Diana McVey, Kristen Pellegrino, Rita Porfiris, and Artistic Director John Pellegrino. Applications represented many talented young musicians age 13-18, including pianists; string, wind, and brass players; and vocalists.

About Music on the Hill

The 2024 Festival offers seven concerts in East Greenwich, Cranston, and Warwick, May 27 – June 9, with details to be announced shortly. Since 2008, Music on the Hill has welcomed thousands of chamber music lovers to a June festival of concerts across Rhode Island, from our hometown of East Greenwich to Providence, North Providence, Warwick, Cranston, Jamestown, Wickford, Westerly and more. Our ensemble includes professional musicians native to Rhode Island with international careers, as well as their colleagues who have come to see ours as a favorite festival, returning to the Ocean State each summer. Music on the Hill’s adventurous programs combine highlights of chamber music repertoire with less familiar gems. In intimate venues where the audience sits up close to the action, musicians play in a variety of ensembles in multiple concerts. Music on the Hill’s festival is made possible by support from The Carter Family Charitable Trust, The Aaron Roitman Fund for Chamber Music, and Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, through an appropriation by the Rhode Island General Assembly, a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and private funders.