Caroline performed on Show 361 in Brunswick, Maine on October 17, 2018.

Jiaxun “Caroline” Yao (cello), 16, lives in Flushing, New York and is a junior at Evangel Christian School in Long Island City. She is a recipient of From the Top’s Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award. She studies with Richard Aaron and Sieun Lin at the Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division, where she also performs with the Juilliard Pre-College Symphony. She recently enjoyed learning and performing the Beethoven Triple Concerto in just a week’s time. Caroline was the first place winner in the New York Chamber Player Orchestra Concerto Competition, as well as first place children’s division winner of the Alice and Eleonore Schoenfeld International String Competition in Hong Kong. In her spare time, she loves photography and working-out.

The Davisson Guitar Duo performed on Show 361 on October 17, 2018 in Brunswick, Maine.

Jack, 13, and Elle, 10, Davisson (guitar) live in Palo Alto, California and study with Christopher Mallett at the California Conservatory of Music. They have been playing as a dynamic duo since 2017. Second place winners at the 2017 and 2018 Guitar Foundation of America Small Ensemble Youth Competition, they recently had the honor of opening a concert by the world famous David Russell. They were also featured in Classical Guitar Magazine’s Sunday Prodigy series. As solo artists, they have placed in many competitions around the country including first place at the 2018 Columbus State University Guitar Competition (Division III), first place at the 2017 Indiana International Guitar Competition (Junior Youth), first place at the 2017 Boston GuitarFest Competition (Youth Division II and Youth Division III), and first place at the 2016 and 2018 United States International Music Competition (Guitar Group A). Besides their love of classical guitar, this brother-sister team also shares a passion for soccer, Tae Kwon Do, and reading.

Aaron performed on Show 361 in Brunswick, Maine on October 17, 2018.

Aaron Brown (bassoon), 17, lives in Shapleigh, Maine where he is a senior at Massabesic High School and studies bassoon with Wren Saunders, Artist Faculty of the University of Southern Maine. Aaron is a recipient of From the Top’s Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award. He has performed with the Portland Youth Wind Ensemble
, Portland Youth Symphony Orchestra, the Massabesic High School Chamber Singers, New England Conservatory’s Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, and has been selected for Maine’s All-State for the past three years. Outside of music, Aaron enjoys studying math, literature, and history.

Avery performed on Show 374 at the Cliburn International Junior Competition at age 18, Show 361 in Brunswick, Maine on October 17, 2018, at age 17, and Show 251, recorded in April 2012, at age 10.

Show 374 Bio:

Avery Gagliano (piano), 18, cannot remember a time when music wasn’t a part of her life; it has always been her “most natural form of expression.” At age 9, she made her Carnegie Hall debut and her orchestral debut at the Strathmore Concert Hall. The following year she appeared on NPR’s From the Top and made her solo recital debut. Currently in her third year at the Curtis Institute of Music studying with Jonathan Biss and Gary Graffman, she has taken first prize at the Aspen Music Concerto, MostArts Festival Piano, and Chopin International Piano (Hartford) Competitions, was young scholar of the Lang Lang International Music Foundation, and is a 2019 National YoungArts winner in music. As a soloist and an avid chamber musician, the Washington, D.C.-native has performed in major concert venues in her hometown, as well as across the United States, and in Paris, Oxford, Munich, and Perugia in Europe. During her free time, Avery writes pop songs, and loves to sing, read, and play ultimate frisbee.

Show 361 Bio:

Avery Gagliano (piano), 17, is originally from Washington, D.C. but recently moved to Philadelphia to study with Jonathan Biss and Gary Graffman at the Curtis Institute of Music. Avery was first featured on From the Top as a Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist when she was 10-years-old. In addition to performing with orchestras and in concert halls across the United States, she is a young artist of the Artemisia Akademie at Yale, a two-year winner of the US Chopin Foundation Scholarship (2016 and 2017), and a Young Scholar of the Lang Lang International Music Foundation (2014 – 2016). Recently, Avery was named a 2019 YoungArts Winner in Music. She also enjoys singing and writing pop songs, cooking, reading, watching movies, playing ultimate frisbee, and designing jewelry (with shrink art).

Program bio from Show 251:

Avery Gagliano (piano), 10, is from Washington, D.C, and attends John Eaton Elementary School. She studies with Marina Alekseyeva at the Levine School of Music and occasionally plays with the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestra. In 2011, Avery won a gold medal for the American Association for Development of the Gifted and Talented “Passion of Music” and performed at Carnegie Hall. Avery is kept busy with ballet, swimming, Chinese, and schoolwork, but also enjoys performing, acting, dancing, and watching comedies or adventure movies.

Brandon appeared on Show 361 on October 17, 2018 in Brunswick, Maine.

Brandon Aponte (violin), 17, lives in Blue Hill, Maine, where he is a senior at John Bapst Memorial High School and studies violin with Dr. Anatole Wieck. Brandon is the concertmaster of the Bangor Symphony Youth Orchestra. This summer, he toured Asia with the the 2018 National Youth Orchestra of the United States, under the direction of a Michael Tilson Thomas, a program of Carnegie Hall. Brandon is also the co-Captain of his high school swim team and enjoys paddle boarding and sailing. He is interested in pursuing a career in biomedical research.

Orli has joined From the Top as Guest Host on Show 420, Show 422,  Show 404, Show 405, Show 390, Show 389, Show 379, Show 380, and Show 361.

Concert Pianist Orli Shaham is a regular guest host on From the Top and has an impressive international reputation as one of today’s most gifted pianists. The New York Times called her a “brilliant pianist”, and she is admired worldwide for her interpretations of both standard and modern repertoire.

Orli Shaham released Volumes 1, 2 & 3 of the complete Mozart Sonatas on Canary Classics to rave reviews around the world: “overwhelmingly stunning” (Piano Dao), “altogether exceptional” (World Music Report) and “An absolute must for any of Mozart’s fans” (Midwest Record Review). Volumes 4, 5 and 6 are released in 2023. Her Mozart recording project also includes a concertos album with St. Louis Symphony, proclaimed “outstanding” by International Piano.

In addition to performing concertos and recitals around the world, she is on the piano and chamber music faculty at The Juilliard School. In 2022 Ms. Shaham served on the jury for Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and the Honens International Piano Competition. She is host of Orli Shaham’s Bach Yard, a live interactive concert series and interactive video series for young children designed to develop listening skills, which she founded in 2010.

Ms. Shaham is one of From the Top’s Co-Hosts and Creatives, and has hosted episodes since 2018.

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