Clarinetist Max Opferkuch is the 2019 grand prize winner of the Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts Instrumental Competition. He is also a 2019 fellow of the Tanglewood Music Center in Lenox, Massachusetts. Hailing from Encinitas, California, Opferkuch got his start in piano and violin as a child before switching to clarinet. He has performed with many orchestras and chamber ensembles, including All-State Honor Bands and the Mainly Mozart Youth Orchestra. Opferkuch is currently in his fourth year of study with Yehuda Gilad at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music.

Max Opferkuch was joined in these performances by pianist Heejung Ju.