The Seattle Youth Music Festival is a student-run music festival project as a part of the Chinese American Civic Association’s Youth Leadership Enhancement Program. It was founded and led by Corey Zhang in the summer of 2022 and run by him and other high school students. This year, the leadership team consisted of some new and old members: Nigel Cao, Fiona Xie, Harini Saravanan, Cici Yihang Zhang, and Peter Fu. This music festival is a culmination of our philosophy of uplifting society in the face of social issues and our musical passion to fulfill my mission of bridging generational gaps. In the wake of the pandemic, young musicians faced a void in transformative, in-person musical experiences. Unlike profit-driven events, we prioritized community impact over ticket sales. Corey led a dedicated team of students to address this void by organizing annual senior center recitals, providing a platform for Seattle’s youth to showcase their musical passion while bringing joy to the elders through the universal language of music.

The Seattle Youth Music Festival had a very successful first recital for the seniors at Timber Ridge at Talus on January 2nd, 2023. The recital featured 26 talented musicians from our online submissions. We had the pleasure of entertaining over 200 senior residents and parents while presenting a $570 donation on behalf of the medalists to the Director of Philanthropy, Jessica Wong, of the Kin On senior center. After receiving many compliments from both participants in the festival as well as Diane Mortenson, Timber Ridge at Talus Community Life Services Director, expressing her gratitude for the impact of music festival, the second annual recital was again held at Timber Ridge at Talus on February 4, 2023 with 40 musicians performing and $730 donated to Kin On.

This year, SYMF proudly hosted its annual recital on Sunday, March 2, 2025, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. This year’s event marked a significant milestone as it was held in person at Kin On 健安, located at 4416 S Brandon St, Seattle, WA 98118, allowing young musicians to share their artistry directly with the senior residents that they were donating to.

The festival’s format included an online submission phase in December 2024, where young artists submitted recordings of their performances on various instruments, including flute, French horn, strings, piano, and vocal pieces. A panel of judges selected gold, silver, and bronze medalists, with sponsorship from CACA providing monetary awards donated on behalf of the medalists to Kin On, demonstrating continued support for the Chinese American senior citizen community.

The in-person recital at Kin On was a heartfelt culmination of these efforts. For the past two years, donations were made to Kin On without the opportunity to perform live for the residents due to health and safety restrictions. This year, the festival’s participants were honored to finally share their music in person, creating a memorable experience for both the young musicians and the senior residents.

A heartfelt thank you to Kin On for welcoming us into your home. This year, SYMF finally had the chance to be in person sharing our music with Kin On. Thanks to the generous sponsorship

of the Chinese American Civic Association, SYMF donated $600 to Kin On, not just as an organization, but as a home to the seniors deeply respected and admired.

The Seattle Youth Music Festival remains dedicated to uplifting society through musical passion, fostering intergenerational connections, and enriching the community through the arts.