STORY:
These vibrating strings are no longer being played by the tense hands of competitors awaiting their moment on stage.

Now is that moment, and the strings, bow, and player are all united in the performance of one of three Mozart concerti, turning the first movement and soloist's cadenza of his Concerto No. 3, 4, or 5 into an impassioned argument that the violinist should go on forward to the next rounds of competition, and ultimately have their chance to vie for the gold, silver, or bronze awards this Sunday.
 
For some of these competitors, though they have participated in such competitions before, there is always a sense of uncertainty over what the results will be. After all, no two performances are ever the same, particularly with such demanding material. It certainly helps, however, that players and judges alike seem to have a great deal of respect and affection for all of the pieces.

[Nate Robinson, Competitor]:
"I think it's a wonderful choice of repertoire, you know I love all this repertoire; that was a big reason I entered the competition. Along with the great message and mission I think this competition has, the repertoire is wonderful, I played the Mozart concerto this morning, and tomorrow if I get into the next round I'll play the Bach fugue, and the next round is Paganini and Viniovsky: It's all really great repertoire for the violin.” 

But these players will be evaluated on much more than just an accurate rendition of the original music - their attitude, emotion, poise and personality are all being considered by the panel of judges seated in the silence of New York Town Hall theatre.

[Sherry Kloss, Competition Judge]:
"I look at the whole package, because one quality is not enough to characterize a human being. It's like anything in life; It's not just a pretty face as they say, there are many things: heart and soul and presentation, so actually I am looking at each contestant from the moment they walk out onto the stage to the way they say ‘Hello' to their public. Then of course the first notes of their performance will capture me or will not capture me. Now if I'm not captured immediately, I don't give up, I'm still looking, I'm looking for what each one might have to offer that is special or magical. I am also looking for stylistic interest in the playing, In other words, we always hope that performances will be in tune and perfectly executed, but there is a lot more than that going on and I think that's the philosophy of this competition, which I love, and that is ‘What do you have to say?'”

Each of the competitors is certainly hoping that some of what they will have to say tomorrow will be words of celebration at having been selected for the next round. 
 
As the first day of competition is brought to a close, the remaining semifinalists are preparing mentally for their next challenges from Beethoven and Bach, and are one step closer to Sunday's final decision.

From the Town Hall, this is Ryan Mitchell reporting for NTD, New York.