2011 Class Rep / Conrad Tao

Conrad Tao, a native of Urbana, Illinois, currently resides in New York City, where he graduated from Indiana University High School’s Independent Study program and the Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division. Conrad started violin lessons at age three, formal piano lessons at the age of three and a half, gave his first piano recital at age four, and made his concerto debut at age eight. At age 10, he was featured on the national radio program From the Top as both pianist and composer. Conrad has appeared as a piano soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Russian National Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony, and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, among others, and has given solo recitals at the Louvre, the Ravinia Festival, the Gilmore Series and venues in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Mexico, and Chile. He is a seven-time consecutive winner of the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award. Conrad recently was recognized as a YoungArts Gold Winner in Music-Composition and will be attending Columbia University in the fall.

2010 Class Rep / Michael Silberblatt

Michael is a self-dubbed “analytical artist.” His interest in calculus and economics, coupled with his passion and talent for theatrical performance, make him a truly whole-brained individual. Michael, who began performing in the fifth grade, has taken the stage in a range of productions, from Hello Dolly! at the Coronado School of the Arts to a bilingual production of Romeo and Juliet at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. He is a two-time English Speaking Union Regional Shakespeare Competition Finalist, a recipient of the 2010 NFAA YoungArts Silver Award in Theater, and a 2010 Presidential Scholar in the Arts. He enjoys acting, dancing (hip-hop, modern, and jazz), singing, soccer, and shamelessly working through calculus problems for fun. Michael is currently studying Theater, Economics, and Business Institutions at Northwestern University.

2009 Class Rep / Kate Davis

Kate Davis is a vocalist and bassist based out of Portland, OR. She currently attends the Manhattan School of Music. Kate enjoys performing in a variety of styles, and is enthusiastic about preserving great American songs that have been written throughout the past century.

After moving to the Pacific Northwest in middle school, Kate was nurtured by the supportive music community in Portland Oregon. There, she was able to satisfy her hunger to learn and perform. Late in high school Kate achieved national recognition for her bass and vocals. She was named an NFAA "YoungArts" Silver winner, accumulated four Downbeat Magazine Student Awards, was twice invited to the Brubeck Summer Jazz Colony, and was bassist in the Grammy Jazz Ensemble. She was also selected as a Presidential Scholar of the Arts, which included a White House visit and a performance at the Kennedy Center.

Songwriting, composing, and arranging are recent interests. She has performed with numerous groups at the Manhattan School of music, and has played at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola and The Blue Note, both with school groups.