Hermelindo Ruiz
Two Yale School of Music students recently took top honors at prestigious instrumental competitions. Puerto Rican guitarist Hermelindo Ruiz, who studies with Benjamin Verdery and is scheduled to earn his master of music degree next year, was given the Andrés Segovia – José Miguel Ruiz Morales Prize at the Curso de Música de Santiago de Compostela, in Spain. Jihoon Shin, a South Korean flutist who earned a master of music degree from the Yale School of Music in 2009, won the National Flute Association’s Young Artist Competition.
Ruiz said that the Andrés Segovia – José Miguel Ruiz Morales Prize “exemplifies the relevance on the dual career that I currently pursue as both a guitarist and composer,” according to language on Yale School of Music’s website.
Legendary guitarist Andres Segovia and Spanish diplomat José Miguel Ruiz Morales created the program, which focuses on both performance and composition.
Ruiz published several works for guitar in a 2008 collection titled Con los dedos entre hilos.
Jihoon Shin
In North Carolina earlier this month, Shin, a former student of Ransom Wilson, advanced from a field of 25 to win the National Flute Association’s Young Artist Competition, according to Yale School of Music’s website. She was also recognized for the “Best Performance of a Newly Commissioned Work” for her performance of George Tsontakis’ Imagine. Shin took home a $5,000 prize for winning the competition and will perform at the National Flute Association’s annual conference next year in Las Vegas.