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Composition Contests

2026 Composition Contest Winners
Works will be performed at the 2026 Belvedere Festival June 17-20
(Contest Guidelines and information on Past Winners)

1st Prize
Haibei Chen
The Juilliard School
Duo (violin, piano)

Hoi Pui (Haibei) Chen is a composer, pianist, and violist whose works are deeply influenced by literature, often setting poetry and prose as integral musical material. She has written for orchestra, chamber ensembles, solo instruments, and voice, with performances at Juilliard’s Paul Hall, Tanglewood on Parade, and Tianjin Juilliard Recital Hall. Her orchestral music has also been read by the Young Artists Orchestra at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, where she attended the Young Artists Composition Program onfull scholarship. This summer, she will attend Yellow Barn’s Young Artists Program and the CCI//St. Louis festival.

Originally from China, Haibei is pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Composition at The Juilliard School on scholarship, studying with Amy Beth Kirsten, continuing the composition studies she began with Niccolò Athens at Tianjin Juilliard Pre-College. She has performed as a violist in numerous chamber ensembles and sings in choral projects, and as a pianist has participated in national and international competitions. 



2nd Prize
Thomas Edgar
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
The Gyroid (violin, piano)

Thomas Edgar (b. 2001) is a composer and pianist whose work blends the lyrical expressiveness of late Romanticism with modern jazz harmony and improvisational elements. His music, encompassing pieces for soloists, chamber ensembles, jazz groups, and symphony orchestra, often draws inspiration from the beauty and power of nature, poetry, and introspective imagery, inviting listeners to engage emotionally and immerse themselves in the rich sound worlds he creates.

His recent projects include a commissioned work for the Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra of Taiwan, a piece for solo clarinet and EFX pedals featured on Christopher Mothersole’s album Refractions, and an orchestral work to be premiered at the Southern Illinois Music Festival as part of the American 250 celebration.

Edgar holds degrees in Piano Performance and Aviation Flight from Southern Illinois University. He currently resides in Boston, Massachusetts, where he balances his musical career with his work as a commercial airline pilot.

3rd Prize
Amirhossein Zeinali
University of Utah
Swan Song (cello, piano)

Amirhossein Zeinali (b. 2000) is a composer, whose work explores the intersection of Persian musical traditions and Western contemporary music, crafting a personal and intercultural artistic voice. His compositions have been featured at events such as The Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States Conference (SEAMUS), The New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival (NYCEMF), Marginale Transmedia Arts and Electronic Music Festival, the National Association of Composers USA Conference (NACUSA), and The Sunset ChamberFest, and broadcast on Radiophrenia and Resonance FM. He was commissioned by the Utah Philharmonia through the 2024–2025 Steve Roens Prize, and his music was performed by this orchestra.


Amirhossein received his bachelor’s degree in composition from the Art University of Isfahan and his master’s degree in composition from the University of Utah, where he studied with Miguel Chuaqui, Elisabet Curbelo, and Jessica Rudman. During his graduate studies, he also served as a graduate assistant, teaching courses in music technology and aural skills.

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