2025 Outstanding Young Alumni Award

Vincenzo Keawe Calcagno ’21 

We are thrilled to recognize Vincenzo Keawe Calcagno as San Domenico’s 2025 Outstanding Young Alumni! A Marin County native and gifted violist, Vincenzo is currently completing his senior year at The Juilliard School, where he studies under Heidi Castleman and Misha Amory as a recipient of the Irene Diamond and E. & J. Brenner Scholarships.

This summer, Vincenzo will continue honing his artistry at the Verbier Festival Academy and the Perlman Music Program Chamber Music Workshop, two of the most prestigious training grounds for emerging soloists. An expressive and versatile musician, he has performed at Carnegie Hall, collaborated with the Calidore Quartet in the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Master Class Series, and recently served as principal violist in the Juilliard Orchestra’s performance of Verklärte Nacht.

Vincenzo has studied at renowned programs such as the Taos School of Music, the Perlman Music Program, and the Music Academy of the West, where he worked intensively with the Takács Quartet and performed under the baton of Maestro Anthony Parnther. He has also received coaching from distinguished musicians including Cynthia Phelps, Richard O’Neill, and Karen Dreyfus.

Coming from a long line of Kanaka (Native Hawaiian) musicians and entertainers, Vincenzo’s deep connection to music began in childhood, surrounded by his family’s musical heritage and the diverse sounds of the Bay Area. He started his musical training as a chorister and soloist with the San Francisco Boys Chorus, later performing with the San Francisco Opera Chorus before discovering his passion for the viola in his school’s orchestra and chamber music program. At 15, he was accepted into the studio of Helen Callus at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music, a mentorship that deeply influenced his musical journey.

Please join us in celebrating Vincenzo’s incredible achievements and bright future in classical music!