Sarah Ma, 13, is in her fourth year at the Manhattan School of Music’s Pre-College Division where she studies with Elizabeth Faidley. She is the recipient of the Kate Bamberger Memorial Scholarship Fund and is concertmaster of the Symphony Orchestra. Sarah has won numerous competitions including grand prize in the Union City Young Artist Competition, first place in the New York Chamber Players Music Competition, first prize in the Alexander Buono International Competition, first prize in the “Music of Eastern Europe” division of the Great Composers Competition, first prize in the East Coast International Competition, gold prize in the 8th Annual Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra Young Artists Concerto Competition, first prize in the 2012 Le Petit Orchestre competition, first prize in the New York Concerti Sinfonietta Shining Stars Competition, silver medal in the 2014 Young Maestro Competition, first prize in the VIVO International Competition, and Alternate of the 2013 Manhattan School of Music’s Concerto Competition. In 2014, Sarah won the MSM Concerto Competition and became the youngest winner in the school’s history.
Sarah has performed as a soloist with several orchestras, including the Manhattan String Orchestra, the New York Concerti Sinfonietta, the Manhattan School of Music’s Symphony Orchestra, and the Union City Philharmonic Orchestra, Indiana University’s Informatics Philharmonic, the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, the New York Chamber Players Orchestra, and will soon be performing the entire Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra.
In a review of her performance of the Mendelssohn Concerto with the New York Concerti Sinfonietta Orchestra, the Epoch Times reported, “Sarah played with a radiant innocence at a ferocious clip that an adult would be hard-pressed to match...She has fleet fingers, a rich tone, and a warm vibrato. Her incisive bow control is very advanced. Her command of up-bow staccato defies belief…Her inspiring playing and interpretation is to be extraordinary for a violinist of any age."
Sarah has performed in several masterclasses with artists Ray Chen, Rebecca Henry, Charlie Siem, Laura Frautschi, Nicholas Mann, Susie Park, and Stefan Jackiw. Other than the violin, Sarah loves to swim, currently swimming on the Long Island Aquatic Club’s swim team (LIAC), and enjoys creating art, winning a Gold Medal on her work "A Thousand Words" as well as honorable mention on her work "Dream Crane" in the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition, and first place in the art category of the Arline Thomas Urban Bird Literacy/Art Contest.
