Catching up on Competitions

 

The Fourth International Gustav Mahler Conducting Competition has chosen 12 young conductors to compete in Bamberg this June. The candidates, all under 35 and drawn from a pool of 407 applicants representing 60 different countries, include two female candidates—Yuko Tanaka of Japan and Zoi Tsokanou of Greece—as well as Taiwanese native Tung-Chieh Chuang, David Danzmayr of Austria, Botinis Dimitris from Greece/Russia, Gad Kadosh of Israel/France, Japanese native Yoshinao Kihara, Venezuelan native Manuel López-Gómez, June-Sung Park of South Korea, Israeli native Lahav Shani, American native Joseph Young and Lu Yu of China. Jury members are Jonathan Nott, principal conductor of the Bamberger Symphony Orchestra; Jonathan Mills, director of the Edinburgh International Festival and composer; and Markus Stenz, general music director of the City of Cologne. The triennial competition, founded in 2004, revolves around symphonic repertoire ranging from Mahler to Wallin. Former winners include Gustavo Dudamel (Musical America’s 2013 Artist of the Year) and Ainars Rubikis, who made his debut at the Salzburg Festival in 2011.

 

Lorenzo Soulès, 20, of France won the International Piano Competition in Geneva last November, winning 20,000 CHF.-- along with four special prizes including the audience prize and the “coup de coeur Breguet” prize, which offers a CD recording. Soulès is a student of Pierre-Laurent Aimard, who happens to have won second prize at the competition in 1976. Russian native Mikhail Sporov, 28, won this year’s second prize of 12,000 CHF., while Aya Matsushita of Japan, 28, came in third and received 8,000 CHF. The winners, selected from a pool of 32 pianists ages 19 to 29, respectively performed Brahms, Liszt, and Schumann concertos with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under John Axelrod in the final concert (available for viewing online). The competition, in its 67^th iteration last year, was founded in 1939 by Henri Gagnebin, former director of the Conservatoire de Genève, and Viennese native Frédéric Liebstoeckl.

The International Piano Competition Marguerite Long did not award its 25,000 euro first prize in Paris last December. Korean pianist Jong Do An, 26, won 15,000 euro for second place, as well as two special prizes for best recital and best performance of a work by Bechara El-Khoury. French pianist Ismael Margain took home the 6,000 euro third prize as well as the audience prize. Korean pianists Juyoung Park and Jae-Yeon Won placed fourth and fifth, for  4,500 euro and 3,000 euro respectively. A pool of 53 pianists from 11 countries competed. Former winners include Paul Badura-Skoda, Philippe Entremont, Elisabeth Leonskaia, and Brigitte Engerer. Menahem Pressler served as jury chair this year. The competition was founded in 1943 in the name of pianist Marguerite Long alongside a vocal competition dedicated to the legacy of legendary French soprano Régine Crespin. It has been biennial since 2007.

 

The Eighth Hamamatsu International Piano Competition announced its six winners last November. Korean native Kim June placed first for 3 million yen; Nagakiri Nozomi of Japan came in second for 1.8 million yen; Russian native Ilya Rashkovskiy won third for 1.2 million yen; Sato Takashi, Takumi Kei, and Anna Tcybuleva placed fourth, fifth, and sixth place. The triennial competition was founded in 1991 to commemorate the 80^th anniversary of the founding of Hamamatsu City, foster international exchange, and provide a venue for young pianists to display their talent. Former winners include Rafal Blechacz, Alexander Kobrin, and Alexander Gavrylyuk.

 

At the International Piano Competition de Ferrol, Russian pianist Alexey Chernov won the first prize of 10,000 euro, German pianist Leon Buche took second, for 6,500 euro, and José Ramón García Pérez, won the 4,500 euro third prize. The triennial competition, founded in 1984, had its eighth iteration in the Spanish city of Ferrol last November. It is open to pianists 16-35 years of age. Former winners include Mihkel Poll, Alexander Yakovlev, Daniil Tsvetkov and Nikolai Saratovski.

 

The 73^rd Standard Life Competition of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal (OSM) has announced pianist Xiaoyu Liu, 15 as the winner of its grand prize, awarding him a $10,000 scholarship, a concert appearance with the OSM in April, a professional recording in a Radio-Canada studio as well as a broadcast on Espace musique, and a recital at the National Arts Center during the 2014-2015 season. Juilliard student Alexander Malikov, 23 triumphed in the older category of the piano competition, also winning a $10,000 scholarship, while Krystina Marcoux, 23, won in the category of percussion. In second prizes, offering scholarships of $5,000, the jury chose pianists Charles Richard-Hamelin, 23, and Antoine Rivard-Landry, 16, while Clara Warnaar, 21, won the percussion section. Special prizes and small scholarships for residencies at institutions such as Banff were further awarded to the winners. Jury members included concert percussionist Colin Currie and Peabody professor Benjamin Pasternack. The annual competition was founded in 1940 and partners with the Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada. Former winners include Louis Lortie and Jan Lisiecki.