Hao Yang and Igor Klokov have been named recipients of the 2026–27 GSI Foundation Classical Guitar Scholarship at the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music. Guitar Salon International announced the awards on 3 September.
Yang’s competition results include first prize at the 2024 Koblenz competition and second prize in the Guitar Foundation of America’s 2024 International Concert Artist Competition. Her studies have taken her through Curtis, the University of Denver’s Lamont School of Music and Yale.
Klokov studied in Brno with Vladislav Bláha and in Mainz with Hubert Käppel. His international competition successes include Koblenz and the Guitar Art Festival in Belgrade, and his debut recording, Hommage, features Bach, Giuliani and Rodrigo.
Support for advanced study
The foundation describes the awards as assistance with the costs of the recipients’ guitar education. No award amount is specified in the announcement.
For students considering postgraduate study, the story is a reminder to investigate instrument-specific support alongside a conservatoire’s general funding. These awards have already been allocated; the announcement is not an open scholarship application.
Read the foundation’s announcement and artist profiles
Featured image: scholarship announcement photograph via Guitar Salon International.