Amelia Ly

Eleven-year-old Amelia Ly, a pianist from Peoria, Illinois, began her musical journey at the age of four. Her early training was shaped by Prof. Anna Nogaj, former dean of Bradley University’s Piano Preparatory School, and by Aneta Youngblood. After relocating to Nashville, Tennessee in 2022, Amelia continued her studies with Dr. Craig Nies, distinguished professor at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music and former student of the legendary Mieczysław Horszowski at the Curtis Institute of Music—placing Amelia within a direct pedagogical lineage tracing from Beethoven to Czerny to Chopin.

Featured by ABC News and NPR, Amelia has earned top prizes in numerous international competitions and performed on some of the world’s most iconic stages, including Vienna’s Musikverein, London’s Royal Albert Hall, the Amphitheatre of the Paris Philharmonic, Beethoven-Haus Bonn, and Carnegie Hall in New York, where she made her fifth appearance in November 2024 performing with Orchestra Manhattan under Maestro David Wroe. At age seven, she held her first ticketed solo concert at the Betty Jayne Brimmer Center for the Performing Arts, and in 2021 appeared as a guest artist with the Peoria Symphony Orchestra.

Amelia is equally devoted to community service. Since early childhood, she has shared music with residents of retirement communities, including homes throughout the Peoria area as well as Richland Place and The Heritage at Brentwood in Nashville. She has also performed for Ignite Peoria, OSF Healthcare, the Peoria Women’s Club, Dream Center Peoria fundraisers, and other community programs in both Illinois and Tennessee.

In 2023, Amelia appeared with Dr. Nies at Rachmaninoff’s 150th Birthday Celebration Concert, launching Vanderbilt University’s Sesquicentennial festivities, and returned in March 2025 for Ravel’s 150th Celebration Concert. Her collaboration with Maestro Wroe later led to a featured appearance at the New Jersey Festival Orchestra’s 2025 Annual Gala.

On January 16, 2026, Amelia made her Eastern European orchestral debut with the Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine under Maestro Theodore Kuchar. In August 2026, she recorded with the All-Star Orchestra for PBS with Maestro Gerard Schwarz, followed by collaborations with the University City Symphony Orchestra under Leon Burke and appearances with legendary pianist Dickran Atamian. In October 2026, she performed with Maestro Schwarz at the Palm Beach Symphony, premiering their Young People’s Concert initiative. After her collaboration with Maestro George Stelluto and the Peoria Symphony Orchestra, she is set to present a solo recital at Lincoln Hall at the Allegheny Riverstone Center for the Arts, followed by major recording and performance projects with the Budapest Philharmonic under Maestro Rico Saccani.

Beginning in 2027, Amelia joins Dickran Atamian for Mozart in Harmony: A Journey Across Generations, performing Mozart’s Double Piano Concerto at major domestic and international venues. In the same year, she will appear with Maestro Schwarz in an all-Beethoven program at the EMMA Concert Association in St. Augustine, the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall, and the AMES Center. Additional engagements include a return to the New Jersey Festival Orchestra with Maestro Wroe, a recording with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and a collaboration with Maestro David Itkin and the Abilene Philharmonic in fall 2027.

Outside of music, Amelia enjoys reading, dancing, drawing, swimming, singing, and playing guitar and ukulele. She participates in her school’s choir and gifted program and has attended Vanderbilt University’s Programs for Talented Youth (SAVY) since 2022. She became a member of American Mensa in 2021.

Sarah Carrillo

Sarah Carrillo, a native of Massachusetts, spent much of her early life studying with members of the Boston Symphony, both in Boston and at Tanglewood.  Upon completion of her bachelors degree from Boston University where she studied with the legendary Roger Voisin, she came to Chicago to attend Northwestern University, from which she received her masters degree. Sarah has performed with many groups in the Chicago area, including: Chicago Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Peoria Symphony, Northbrook Symphony, Kalamazoo Symphony, Highland Park Strings, The Chicago Arts Orchestra, Elmhurst Symphony, Landmark Brass, International Chamber Artists, Brass Works Brass Quintet, Northside Brass, Chicago Symphonietta, South Bend Symphony, and Northwest Indiana Symphony.  She has also performed with the Gulbenkian Funducao Orchestra of Lisbon Portugal, the Boston Symphony and New World Symphony.