Winner of the 2024 Judith Elsner Concerto Competition

Wayland resident Joshua Zhang is the winner of the 2024 Judith Elsner Concerto Competition. He was invited to perform a solo trombone piece with the Maine Midcoast Symphony on January 18, 2025 in Lewiston, Maine as part of the competition. He performed the Trombone Concerto by Henri Tomasi.
MSO’s Judith Elser Concerto Competition for college students is held every other year in May. It is open to undergraduate and graduate students – not necessarily studying for a degree in music – who are enrolled in a Maine college or university. Five finalists are selected to perform in a live event that is open to the public.
Joshua who is a junior at Colby College is the first student from the college to win the competition. He is majoring in music and computer science. He began preparing for the competition in the 2023 fall semester.
Zhang was accepted to the National Association of Music Educator All-National Band when he was an 11th-grader at Wayland High School. His former band teacher Joseph Oneschuk, Jr. at the time said, Josh is an amazing player and person. His musical skills are on another level, and he is truly dedicated to his craft.”
In the summer of 2022, Zhang attended Interlochen Arts Camp as a Frederick Fennell Scholar, playing in the World Youth Wind Symphony as principal trombone. Zhang won the John Philip Sousa Award for High School Band. He was also a finalist for the UMass Young Artist Competition, and he won the Second Century Award at New England Music Camp.