AVS

Announcing the 2026 David Dalton Research Competition Winners
The American Viola Society is pleased to announce the winners of the 2026 David Dalton Research Competition, recognizing outstanding scholarship that contributes to the study, documentation, and understanding of the viola and its community. This year’s competition drew an especially strong and competitive pool of submissions, representing a wide range of subjects and approaches to viola research.
We extend our sincere thanks to this year’s judging committee:*Ames Asbell, Andy Braddock, Marcus Pyle, Alice Sprinkle, and Lanson Wells. Their time, expertise, and thoughtful consideration of this year’s submissions were invaluable to the competition. We are deeply grateful for their service and for their commitment to supporting and advancing viola scholarship.

Finally, we thank every scholar who submitted research to the 2026 competition. The quality and breadth of this year’s submissions made for an exceptionally strong competition, and we are grateful for the work each author is contributing to our field.
Please join us in congratulating Roselyn Hobbs and Brenton Caldwell on their achievements and in celebrating the continued growth of viola scholarship.

Announcing the 2026 David Dalton Research Competition Winners

The American Viola Society is pleased to announce the winners of the 2026 David Dalton Research Competition, recognizing outstanding scholarship that contributes to the study, documentation, and understanding of the viola and its community. This year’s competition drew an especially strong and competitive pool of submissions, representing a wide range of subjects and approaches to viola research. We are grateful to all of the scholars who shared their work with the competition and are delighted to recognize two exceptional papers among this year’s entries.

First Prize — Roselynn Hobbs
"Viola as an Opportunity Space: The Feminine Foundations of American Viola Culture."

Second Prize & Harmony Prize — Brenton Caldwell
"Her Viola in My Life: An Investigative Tribute to Karen Phillips."

We extend our sincere thanks to this year’s judging committee:*Ames Asbell, Andy Braddock, Marcus Pyle, Alice Sprinkle, and Lanson Wells. Their time, expertise, and thoughtful consideration of this year’s submissions were invaluable to the competition. We are deeply grateful for their service and for their commitment to supporting and advancing viola scholarship.

Finally, we thank every scholar who submitted research to the 2026 competition. The quality and breadth of this year’s submissions made for an exceptionally strong competition, and we are grateful for the work each author is contributing to our field.

Please join us in congratulating Roselynn Hobbs and Brenton Caldwell on their achievements and in celebrating the continued growth of viola scholarship.

Summer reading for violists has arrived!

Explore the latest contributions to viola scholarship, including new research and perspectives on performance, teaching, repertoire, and the instrument’s rich history.

Access the complete digital edition here:
https://www.americanviolasociety.org/current-issue/

We are grateful to the authors and contributors who shared their expertise and helped bring this issue to life.

We invite you to read, reflect, and share the Summer 2026 issue with your viola community. Have your own research or resources to share? We’re always looking for articles that celebrate all things viola! Share your work and your voice with the viola community: https://www.americanviolasociety.org/article-submission/

Summer reading for violists has arrived!

Explore the latest contributions to viola scholarship, including new research and perspectives on performance, teaching, repertoire, and the instrument’s rich history.

Access the complete digital edition here:
https://www.americanviolasociety.org/current-issue/

We are grateful to the authors and contributors who shared their expertise and helped bring this issue to life.

We invite you to read, reflect, and share the Summer 2026 issue with your viola community. Have your own research or resources to share? We’re always looking for articles that celebrate all things viola! Share your work and your voice with the viola community: https://www.americanviolasociety.org/article-submission/

Congratulations to recipients of 2026 AVS Educator Mini-Grants! Each awardee received $500 to work on the following projects:

Sara Maria Blanton will use her mini-grant funding to attend the National Bornoff Workshop (July 11–17, 2026) at Duquesne University, where she will pursue Level I certification in Bornoff String Pedagogy.

Peijun Xu’s mini-grant funding will support development of original teaching materials, including professionally notated exercises, instructional handouts, and short demonstration videos that seek to create an efficient pedagogy for switching from violin to viola.

Molly Wilkens Reed‘s project is called “The Setup Library.” Her mini-grant funds will be used to purchase a wide variety of student-size should pads, rests, and chin rests for the Virginia Tech String Project.

Elizabeth Pulju-Owen’s mini-grant will help to support students with financial need enrolled at Access Music Education, with extra strings, bow rehairs, and other supplies to help them to continue their studies.

Katherine Lewis will use the funding to develop and publish a viola adaptation of Resonance: A Multicultural Cello Method (2025), a beginning method book that centers repertoire from historically underrepresented cultures and communities.

Congratulations to recipients of 2026 AVS Educator Mini-Grants! Each awardee received $500 to work on the following projects:

Sara Maria Blanton will use her mini-grant funding to attend the National Bornoff Workshop (July 11–17, 2026) at Duquesne University, where she will pursue Level I certification in Bornoff String Pedagogy.

Peijun Xu’s mini-grant funding will support development of original teaching materials, including professionally notated exercises, instructional handouts, and short demonstration videos that seek to create an efficient pedagogy for switching from violin to viola.

Molly Wilkens Reed‘s project is called “The Setup Library.” Her mini-grant funds will be used to purchase a wide variety of student-size should pads, rests, and chin rests for the Virginia Tech String Project.

Elizabeth Pulju-Owen’s mini-grant will help to support students with financial need enrolled at Access Music Education, with extra strings, bow rehairs, and other supplies to help them to continue their studies.

Katherine Lewis will use the funding to develop and publish a viola adaptation of Resonance: A Multicultural Cello Method (2025), a beginning method book that centers repertoire from historically underrepresented cultures and communities.

Congratulations to our exhibition winners!