- Angela Fitzgerald: On March 13th, four gifted young musicians will take the stage here at Overture Hall in Madison.

- Lori Skelton: They're vying for top honors in the Madison Symphony Orchestra's Bolz Young Artist Competition. They are violinist, Monona Suzuki; flautist, Holly Venkitaswaran; cellist, Grace Kim; and pianist, Antonio Wu. You'll see them perform as part of our live broadcast, Wisconsin Young Artists Compete: The Final Forte.

- But before they step into the spotlight, we asked them to tell us a little about themselves, their love of music...

- And the dream that led them here, to center stage.

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[dramatic piano glissando]  

- My name is Antonio Wu, and I am a sophomore at James Madison Memorial High School. I've been taking piano lessons with my mom for almost 11 years.  

When I was really little, my older sister began taking piano lessons with her. And then my other sister followed after her. And my mom would always hold me in her lap while she was teaching them. And so, from a very young age, I always dreamed of playing piano.  

My mom is a very detailed teacher. She doesn't let anything slip by. She's just around the house, so she'll hear something and she'll be like, "You need to fix that." I'm never off the hook! 
[laughs] 

She always has a very unique and creative idea for every nuance of a piece. 

[tennis balls impacting] 
I've played tennis on and off since about second grade. I joined the tennis team in my freshman year. It's just something that I can do to get some exercise and spend some time with friends.  

- This year, we're aiming for 30 volunteers, which is a lot, I know. 

- I am a board member of Spartan Youth Service, which is the largest volunteering organization at our school. Last year, I was one of the three organizers for Spirit Day. We had about 270 volunteers go to over 10 different schools throughout the Madison district and they helped out during the day. I wanted to become a board member because I care deeply about volunteering, and it has also helped me a lot in learning how to be a leader. If I could get four to six volunteers, that would be great.  

I will be performing the "Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 2, the third movement." I like the third movement because it's kind of a reflection on the first two movements, but it also takes on its own character.  The orchestra builds up to this really crashing moment and then it suddenly stops and then the piano takes over in a very passionate, emotion-filled few measures.  It's a challenge for me, mentally and physically.  I enjoy the feeling right after a performance when you know you've done well, and you have no regrets about what you've played. 
§ §  
[applause]