Jason Wang a winner in music composition contest

Jason Wang, an 18-year-old senior at Newport High School, has been named a winner in the C. Keith Birkenfeld Memorial Trust Composition Contest.

His winning composition, "March Overture for Sinfonia," will be performed by the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra on May 24 at the First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, 1717 Bellevue Way NE. Tickets are available at the door.

Wang has been composing for about four years. He was first introduced to composing in 2007 through the David Diamond Young Composers Workshop to compose a piece of chamber music that was performed by Seattle Symphony musicians. In 2009, he submitted a composition to the PTA Reflections program and received an Award of Excellence at the national level.

In 2008 BYSO established the C. Keith Birkenfeld Composition Contest with funds from The C Keith Birkenfeld Memorial Trust in conjunction with the Seattle Foundation. The annual contest’s purpose is to inspire students and showcase young talent by offering them the challenge of creating an original composition for orchestral instruments that is suitable for professional level performance.

Birkenfeld was an educator at Bellevue High School for over 20 years, an administrator with Bellevue Public Schools and a board member of the Bellevue Art Museum. Birkenfeld established the Trust at The Seattle Foundation before he died in September 2005.

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.