Pianist Truman Walker, of Eagle, Idaho, far left, was named the winner of the 2022 Donald Runnicles Musical Arts Scholarship Competition last month. With him are third-place winner, vocalist Kerraline Bemis, of Kalispell, Montana; runner-up violinist Evelyn Lee, Rigby, Idaho; and judges Stephanie Key, Sir Donald Runnicles and David Coucheron.
Truman Walker’s trajectory got a huge boost last month when he was awarded first place in the fifth annual Donald Runnicles Musical Arts Scholarship Competition.
The prize, named for Grand Teton Music Festival Music Director Sir Donald Runnicles, gives $25,000 to a promising musician from the Northern Rockies region bound for continuing classical or jazz studies at an accredited music program.
Evelyn Lee, a violin talent from Idaho’s Rigby High School, earned a $15,000 scholarship for her second-place showing, which she will apply to her upcoming semesters at the University of Texas in Austin. And vocalist Kerraline Bemis, of Kalispell, Montana, won third and $10,000 for her continued studies at the University of North Texas.
The three winners were named by a panel of three judges on July 11 after live performances in Walk Festival Hall by six semifinalists picked from among the scores who applied. Judges, who also perform with the GTMF Orchestra, were clarinetist Stephanie Key of the Dallas Symphony; violinist David Coucheron, concertmaster of the Atlanta Symphony; and Runnicles.
