Gurwitz International Piano Competition to highlight Hispanic composers

 

 

October 31, 2023                                                               CONTACT: Nancy Cook-Monroe, 210 857-0822

 

Breakout international piano competition The Gurwitz expands commitment to emphasize global music and culture, including final round performance with Mexico City Philharmonic

Presented by the Texas-based nonprofit Musical Bridges Around the World, The Gurwitz International Piano Competition underscores the organization's core mission to present multicultural programming by profiling the music of Hispanic composers in the 2024 competition's semifinals and forging a new partnership with the Mexico City Philharmonic for its final concerto round. 

 

Press Kit: https://bit.ly/gurwitz-2024-press-kit

San Antonio, Texas — Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW), the nonprofit multicultural arts and social impact organization based in San Antonio, Texas, will bring the best emerging piano talent from around the globe to compete in San Antonio from January 26 through February 4, 2024.

A breakout event on the international stage, The Gurwitz International Piano Competition seeks to discover the next generation of top young pianists, with a unique focus on programming that bridges the art of Western classical piano music to a diversity of musical traditions from around the world. The competition showcases the work of Hispanic composers in its semifinal Round II, in which six pianists will perform at least one work from a composer of Latin-American or Spanish origin — a tradition of the competition since 2009 celebrating San Antonio’s geographic and cultural makeup — after which the competition jury will announce the winner for Best Performance of a Work by Spanish or Latin Composer.

The 2024 competition puts an even greater spotlight on Hispanic culture and history during Round III, which pairs the three remaining finalists with an ensemble of guest artists to perform an originally commissioned work. While the 2020 competition’s piece highlighted Eastern rhythms and scales, 2024’s work will take inspiration from the Aztec myth and love story “El Colibrí y la Cempasúchil” (The Hummingbird and the Marigold) that is foundational to the celebrations surrounding El Dia de Los Muertos in Mexico. Commissioned composer Aaron Prado, DMA will put to music the sorrow of lost love, the bittersweet joy of the lovers reuniting, as well as feature elements from the folk dances of Mexico and Cuba.

In its final round, the competition has also partnered with the Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of artistic director Scott Yoo to perform a piano concerto with each of the three finalists. Yoo, host of the PBS documentary series “Now Hear This” and a virtuoso violinist, also serves as the 2024 competition’s jury chair, alongside an international panel of world class musicians and industry executives. The live competition jury will narrow twelve contestants to six semifinalists and then three finalists, who will compete for the $30,000 grand prize.

The last competition in 2020 took place just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulted in three medalists — Jiale Li (Gold), Yedam Kim (Silver), and Leonardo Colafelice (Bronze) – who have since performed with MBAW and other Texas-based ensembles while continuing to build high-profile careers on the international stage.

For this competition, a preliminary jury (which included Gold Medalist Jiale Li) reviewed a pool of 76 applicants over the summer that they narrowed down to 12 live contestants. The preliminary jury made the decision to include an additional round to the selection process in order to come to a final decision due to the high level of the applicant submissions. Now selected (see list in bulleted section below) these 12 contestants will perform live in San Antonio exclusively on Shigeru Kawai concert pianos, provided by the Gurwitz 2024’s Official Piano Partners: Shigeru Kawai and Alamo Music Center.

Last but certainly not least is the 2024 competition’s Honorary Chair. She is an international music icon whose 100 million sold records, six Grammy Awards and soothing, sensual voice have made her one of the greatest pop legends of all time: Dionne Warwick.  One quote from the artist exemplifies one of the many reasons why The Gurwitz sought her out: “I’d like to see a world free of strife, stress, pain, hunger, war – a cool place where everyone could live.” This statement mirrors the goals of the competition’s parent nonprofit, Musical Bridges Around the World, whose vision is a world where fine arts are accessible to all, common humanity is recognized, cultural diversity is celebrated, and all are united in peace. Besides her support and involvement in advocating the 2024 competition, Warwick will perform in San Antonio during the competition week.

Details regarding the 2024 competition contestants, jury, schedule of events, and repertoire are as follows.

Competition Contestants

These 12 contestants were narrowed down from 76 total applicants and will compete in four rounds of live competition. The order of play will be drawn at random on the day of their arrival in San Antonio.

• Rachel Breen, USA
• Yangrui Cai, China
• Nathan Cheung, USA
• Young Sun Choi, South Korea
• Tatiana Dorokhova, Russia
• Yungyung Guo, China
• Chi-Jo Lee, Taiwan
• Yongqiu Liu, China
• Ilya Shmukler, Russia
• Jialin Yao, China
• Zifan Ye, China
• Zihao Wu, China

Competition Jury

This prestigious panel will adjudicate the live rounds of the 2024 competition in San Antonio.

• Scott Yoo, United States — Jury Chair (Excluded from Round IV jury due to additional role as orchestra conductor/director)
• Tanja Dorn, Germany
• Michael Fine, the Netherlands
• Sergio Tiempo, Venezuela/Argentina
• Mikhail Voskresensky, Russia/United States
• Lilya Zilberstein, Germany

Preliminary Jury

This esteemed jury was tasked with narrowing down a wealth of applicants from around the world to 12 selected contestants to perform live in San Antonio. 

• Pasquale Iannone, Italy
• Jiale Li, China — The Gurwitz 2020 Gold Medalist
• Daria Rabotkina, Russia/United States

Competition Rounds and Repertoire

Round I

January 27–28, 2024, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. & 6 - 9 p.m. CT

• Twelve contestants each perform a 50-minute recital
• There are no program restrictions for this round — contestants may choose their repertoire freely
• At the end of the round, six semifinalists are chosen to continue to Round II
• Winner of the Junior Jury Award announced

Round II

January 30, 2024, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. & 6 - 9 p.m. CT

• Six semifinalists each perform a 50-minute recital
• All semifinalists perform at least one work by a composer from their own country of origin and at least one work from a composer of Latin-American or Spanish origin
• At the end of the round, three finalists are chosen to continue to Rounds III and IV
• Winner of the Best Performance of a Work by Spanish or Latin Composer Award announced

Round III

February 1, 2024, 7 p.m. CT

• Three finalists perform repertoire after 1950 of their choice, and a commissioned chamber music work by San Antonio composer Dr. Aaron Prado with an ensemble of acclaimed guest artists
• Winner of the Audience Favorite Award announced

Round IV

February 3, 2024, 7 p.m. CT

H-E-B Performance Hall, Tobin Center for the Performing Arts

• Three finalists perform a complete concerto with the Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of its artistic director, Scott Yoo — renowned violinist and host of the PBS series Now Hear This
• Winners of the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medals announced

Awards & Prizes

• Gold Medal - $30,000 USD (Round IV)
• Silver Medal - $20,000 USD (Round IV)
• Bronze Medal - $10,000 USD (Round IV)
• Audience Favorite Award - $5,000 USD (Round III)
• Best Performance of a Work by Spanish or Latin Composer - $5,000 USD (Round II)
• Junior Jury Award - $2,500 USD (Round I)

Tickets & Competition Updates

Tickets/RSVP registration to all competition rounds are free and but do require registration, and will open in early December 2023. The registration’s demographic data collection is essential in helping to keep these events free and open to the public. Personal information such as name and email are NOT shared outside of the organization unless prior consent is given.

• Rounds I–III: Free tickets will be available through Musical Bridges Around the World’s Eventbrite, with check-in handled directly by The Gurwitz International Piano Competition / Musical Bridges Around the World.
• Round IV: General Admission RSVPs and check-in will be handled by the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. More information and details on RSVP and check-in process will be provided at a later date.

More information about The Gurwitz 2024 International Piano Competition, including additional ticketed events throughout the competition week such as a jury showcase and awards brunch, are available at thegurwitz.org.

About Musical Bridges Around the World

A nonprofit multicultural arts and social impact organization based in San Antonio, Texas, Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW) provides access to high-quality performing and visual arts to people throughout the greater San Antonio, TX area, with a dedicated focus on bringing music and cultural exploration to underserved communities.

Founded as chamber concerts in 1998 by Russian-born concert pianist Anya Grokhovski, DMA, and a group of San Antonio music lovers, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit now comprises a host of free public programs that promote cultural understanding through high-quality, one-of-a-kind performances that blur the lines between genres, connecting Western classical, jazz, and folk music to a diversity of vibrant musical traditions from around the world.

Every year, MBAW's seasonal concert series, annual music festival, quadrennial piano competition, visual art gallery, educational concerts and curriculum, senior living community performances, youth ambassador program, and music scholarship showcase the beauty, creativity, and art of local cultures and those from around the world.

musicalbridges.org

About The Gurwitz International Piano Competition

The Gurwitz International Piano Competition discovers the next generation of top young pianists from around the world through four rounds of competition, with a unique focus on programming that bridges the art of Western classical piano music to a diversity of musical traditions from around the world. Since its inception in 1984, when it was known as the San Antonio International Piano Competition, the competition has inspired young pianists from around the world to greater heights in their careers, with many taking their rightful places among the most prestigious music faculties in the world while bringing joy to audiences around the globe through concert engagements.

Acquired by Musical Bridges Around the World in 2016, the quadrennial event was renamed to honor the late Ruth Jean Gurwitz, a competition co-founder and President Emeritus for more than 20 years. Now a premier event on the global musical stage watched by music lovers around the world through livestream technology, the competition was accepted in 2018 as a member of the Geneva-based World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC) — a member of the International Council of Music founded by UNESCO in 1949 with a mission to "promote access to music for all and the value of music in the lives of all people.” It is also a member of the Alink-Argerich Foundation, an independent worldwide information and service center for musicians and competitions which offers the most complete details on music competitions ever compiled.

thegurwitz.org

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