Sax Player Awarded Music Scholarship

KO Creative Arts Chair Todd Millen announced that Pindar Chen ’25 is the recipient of The Giamalis Family Music Merit Scholarship, established by Christine and Stephen Giamalis. The scholarship is awarded to an Upper School music student who will participate in the Kingswood Oxford band, orchestra, or choir and is given to a student who exemplifies excellence in musical performance as seen in their application’s video submission. 

Millen, who chaired the selection committee said, “This year awarding the Giamalis Family Music Merit Scholarship was difficult as we had a large pool of highly talented and accomplished musicians to choose from. Chen’s application stood out because of both his consistent technical prowess on the alto saxophone and his expressive musicianship. As a department, we are grateful for all of the wonderful musicians and families who choose to make KO their academic and artistic home.” 

Inspired by his older brother’s musicianship, Chen began playing the sax in fourth grade. “I would always listen to him practice. That made me fall in love with the instrument,” he said. “He sounded so good.” Part of the application process for the scholarship required the musicians to submit an audition tape, and Chen’s brother was right beside him, sharing tips on technique and nuance.

Chen practices the sax at least one hour a day and finds the experience enjoyable and fun. He appreciates the tone of the instrument which he described as balanced, not as high as a flute and not as low as a trombone. This year Chen advanced to the regionals of the Connecticut Music Educators Association (CMEA), but failed to make it to the All-States. Rather than sitting with this disappointment, Chen used the experience as an incentive to apply for the Giamalis scholarship and work harder to reach All-States next year.