Nurturing Talent. Creating a Legacy.
Behind every great performance is a student who dared to dream—and a community that believed in them. Since 1982, the Performing Arts Scholarship Foundation (PASF) has been the bridge between raw talent and professional destiny in Santa Barbara County.
But our impact doesn’t end when the curtain falls. We are building a lifelong, self-sustaining ecosystem of musical excellence:
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- Continued Growth: Many of our finalists return to our stage year after year, demonstrating extraordinary artistic evolution and dedication.
- Full-Circle Mentorship: Our former winners are now returning to Santa Barbara as elite music educators, mentoring and preparing the next generation of PASF competitors.
- Global Excellence: PASF alumni have gone on to win prestigious international competitions, earn multiple Grammy and Emmy awards, and secure coveted chairs in world-class orchestras and conservatories.
Meet the Future of Music: Our 2026 Winners
Out of dozens of brilliant applicants across the region, these ten extraordinary finalists stood on our stage and moved us. Selected by a professional panel of judges, they represent the absolute best of technical precision, musical interpretation, and heart.
Watch the 2026 Music Competition
Junior Instrumental
First Place
Chloe Emma Silva, Piano
Second Place
Seungyoo Kim-Jung, Violin
Honorable Mention
Skylar Abello, Violin
Honorable Mention
Leon Guo, Piano
Adult Instrumental
First Place
Lydia Plaut, Viola
Second Place
Noelle Hadsall, Piano
Honorable Mention
Annabelle Zhang, Piano
Junior Vocal Division
First Place
Nikki Seppala Kurnik, Soprano
Second Place
Aria Bonski Evans, Soprano
Second Place
Amelia Checketts, Soprano
A Full-Circle Legacy of Excellence
Founded in 1982 by the visionary Sylvia Dellar, PASF was built on a simple, powerful belief: financial barriers should never stand in the way of exceptional musical talent.
Today, that legacy has come beautifully full circle. Dozens of our past winners have gone on to grace the stages of international orchestras, prestigious conservatories, opera companies, and chamber groups worldwide. Even more inspiring? Many of those former PASF competitors have returned to Santa Barbara, now serving as the very instructors guiding our finalists.
When you support PASF, you aren’t just funding a single competition—you are sustaining a continuous, multi-generational cycle of musical brilliance.
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