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Colonel George S. Howard Young Artist Competition

The 2015 Colonel George S. Howard Young Artist Competition is transitioning from a high-school age, solo competition to an immersive experience for college musicians. Winners of this competition will spend an exhilarating weekend in rehearsals, masterclasses, and a performance with The U.S. Air Force Band. Specifics on this exciting opportunity will be posted on our website for updates. Click here for more information on the Collegiate Symposium.


Click to download HiRes photo of Joe Broom2014Winner
Joe Broom
McLean, Va.


McLean, Va., native, Joe Broom is a 17-year old euphonium player who lays claim to a number of unique musical accomplishments. In 2012, he won a seat in the National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship Program -- the only euphonium player in its 34-year history. He was extended membership to the Friday Morning Music Club when he won the Ross-Roberts Competition making him the only euphonium member of this 128-year-old orchestral society. In 2013, Broom became the youngest National YoungArts Week winner in music -- selected from more than 10,000 applicants. In March 2014, he became the only high school student selected as a semifinalist in the Artist Division of the International Tuba Euphonium Association solo competition. His musicianship has drawn the attention of professional artists, including Wynton Marsalis who says he plays "with great drama and technique" and international trumpet soloist Chris Botti, who describes Joe as "a rarified talent who needs to be heard." He is 2014 winner of the U.S. Air Force Young Artist Solo Competition.

Broom maintains an active schedule as an ensemble performer. In 2013, he became a member of the acclaimed Capital Wind Symphony, which is comprised of professional-level musicians in the DC area under the baton of George Etheridge. He is a member of the 2013-14 National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship Böhme Sextet, and is the low brass section leader of Brass of Peace -- a training and performance ensemble for gifted high school musicians directed by Sylvia Alimena. He has performed as a guest member of the U.S. Navy Band, the U.S. Army Orchestra, and with the Brass Band of Battle Creek during Youth Brass Band Day. His past ensembles include the National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship Stravinsky Chamber, the National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship Brass Trio, and the 2013 National Young Arts Brass Chamber. As a soloist, Broom has performed in several venues, including the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage; the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater; the Masonic Center in Cincinnati, Ohio; the Strathmore Mansion; the Bacon House Mansion; the U.S. Marine Corps John Phillip Sousa Memorial Band Hall; and the International Euphonium Institute Festival, where in successive years he won both the high school and artist solo competitions.

As founder and artistic director of Chamber Unique (ChU)™, a dynamic network of young musicians, he created a monthly performance series for a music therapy program serving seniors. Joe also incorporated his ChU network of musicians into a six-session Saturday morning workshop he designed for elementary school students. The workshop integrates music with STEM Education -- including the math of rhythm and the physics of sound -- turning STEM into STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, ART, & Mathematics).

He is a member of the National Honor Society at the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology in Virginia. He has worked as a biomedical intern at Walter Reed Medical Research Center, and he volunteers as an advanced math tutor. He studies with international euphonium soloist Steven Mead of Manchester, England and with Lee Rogers, principal trombonist of the Washington National Opera Orchestra.

He is a member of the National Honor Society at the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology in Virginia. He has worked as a biomedical intern at Walter Reed Medical Research Center, and he volunteers as an advanced math tutor. He studies with international euphonium soloist Steven Mead of Manchester, England and with Lee Rogers, principal trombonist of the Washington National Opera Orchestra.

Previous Winners

2013 - Leah Bandman
Burke, Va.

2012 - Evan Zegiel, tuba
Boca Raton, Fla.

2011 - Jordan Lulloff, saxophone
Okemos, Mich.

2010 - Alison Emily Miserendino, euphonium
Burke, Va.

2009 - Katherine Kohler, clarinet
Naperville, Ill.

2008 - Philip McPeek, marimba
Lafayette, La.

2007 - Beatriz Macias, flute
Houston, Texas

2006 - Gabriel Sears, tuba
Albuquerque, N.M.

2005 - Kristen Vanderschaaf, flute
Round Rock, Texas

2004 - Tihda S. Vongkoth, xylophone
Seminole, Fla.

2003 - Lisa Diane Snyder, clarinet
Mesa, Ariz.

2002 - Eric Arthur Roberts, percussion
Burke, Va.

2001 - David Ross, flute
North Mankato, Minn.

2000 - Nathan Lassell, percussion
Arlington, Va.

1999 - Mark J. Dubac, clarinet
Columbia, Md.

1998 - Timothy Dearmin, saxophone
San Antonio, Texas

1997 - Anna Wessler, flute
Yorktown, Va.

1996 - Ashu Kejariwal, saxophone
The Woodlands, Texas

1995 - Claire Chase, flute
San Diego, Calif.

1994 - Jessica Salt, flute
Vienna, Va.