The Quad City Symphony Youth Ensembles (QCSYE) has announced the winners of the annual Concerto Competition held on Sunday, Dec. 7, at Bettendorf High School. The competition included 14 accomplished Youth Symphony Orchestra (YSO) members performing selections of their choice for the chance to win one of two prestigious prizes.
Cellist Keira Cromwell has won the Grand Prize. Now a two-time Grand Prize winner, Cromwell’s exemplary performance and dedication earned her the honor of performing the first movement of Antonín Dvorak’s Cello Concerto in B minor with the Quad City Symphony Orchestra (QCSO) at the QCSO/QCSYE Side-by-Side Concert on Sunday, April 26, 2026, at 3 p.m. at the Adler Theatre.
Keira Cromwell is a 16-year-old cellist from Iowa City and a junior at Laurel Springs Academy. She began her studies at the Preucil School of Music at age three and has been an active participant in the Preucil Orchestra and Cello Choir for many years. She serves as principal cellist of the YSO.
Keira has been fortunate to perform in a variety of settings and has earned opportunities through concerto competitions with the Central Iowa Symphony, Fort Dodge Area Symphony, Muscatine Symphony, Ottumwa Symphony, and the Quad City Symphony Orchestras. She is also a Pan-American Music Awards winner, which included a solo performance at Carnegie Hall, and a recent recipient of the Iowa City Music Study Club Scholarship Award…