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Yunchan Lim, Piano, 2022 Cliburn Piano Competition

By Paul E. Robinson on 2 October 2022 Classical Music, Music Competition, Piano

This past June in Fort Worth, Tex., 18-year-old Yunchan Lim became the youngest person to ever win gold at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. His performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 during the final round was remarkable by any standard and convinced the members of the jury that he deserved the highest award. But it is likely that he had already separated himself from the other contestants with stunning performances of Liszt’s monumental Transcendental Études and Scriabin’s Piano Sonata No. 2. Yunchan Lim was born in Siheung, South Korea, and began piano lessons at the age of 7.…

David Potvin, Piano, 2022 Eckhardt-Gramatté Competition

By Zenith Wolfe on 2 October 2022 Classical Music, Music Competition, Piano

In the contemporary Eckhardt-Gramatté competition, a competitor’s repertoire must consist of works made no sooner than the 1950s, at least half of them composed by Canadians. So when young pianist David Potvin played exclusively Canadian music, his exceptional effort tying the repertoire together did not go unnoticed by the judges, who awarded him the first-place prize from among six finalists. “I tried to pick a program of contrasting works but present them in an order where they complemented each other well,” Potvin said. “There’s so much wonderful Canadian piano music so I thought, why not? I think I got just as…

Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, Piano, 2022 Santander, Hilton Head and Maria Canals Competitions

By Zenith Wolfe on 2 October 2022 Classical Music, Music Competition, Piano

Young pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko is on a hot streak in 2022! Only months after receiving First Prize at the Hilton Head (March) and Maria Canals (April) competitions, he took home the gold two more times at the Shean (May) and Santander (August) competitions. To the award-winning pianist, competitions are exhausting, especially when hosted back-to-back. The lengthy practice and rehearsal processes are hard enough, but each time he gets on stage he has to make a conscious effort to calm himself down, since he finds competitions more nerve-racking than normal performances. “I always treat each competition round like a performance,” he…

Photo: Annie Héthier

Luc Beauséjour and the World of Bach

By Justin Bernard on 1 October 2022 Baroque and Early, Piano

After his concert series of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s music with Hervé Niquet, his harpsichordist colleague and orchestra conductor, on Sept. 29 and 30, Luc Beauséjour gets back to the great Bach’s music for two more concerts during the Clavecin en concert season. First, for Montreal’s Bach Festival on Nov. 18, he will map out the composer’s musical journey from his youth to maturity; then, on Nov. 17 at the Salle Bourgie for the last year dedicated entirely to his cantatas. In addition, there is a recording of Bach’s Trio Sonatas, arranged for harpsichord, marimba and cello with the duo Stick&Bow, released…

Nicolas Namoradze

Nicolas Namoradze : Honens 2018 Winner

By Carol Xiong on 29 September 2022 Classical Music, Piano

Born in Georgia but raised in Hungary, the pianist-composer Nicolas Namoradze launched his international career when he became the winner of the 2018 Honens International Piano Competition. This Calgary-based contest offers one of the biggest prize packages in the world, and has been rewarding top talent every three years since 1992. Namoradze, at 30, is the latest laureate, and he has already established himself as an artist who is here to stay. Namoradze’s schedule is packed, including the release of a debut disc for Hyperion, appearances at the Toronto Summer Music Festival and the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, as…

Banner image for the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition website

Newswire | 2022 Cliburn Amateur Competition: Details, Changes Announced, Tickets on Sale

By Newswire on 11 August 2022 Classical Music, Music Competition, Newswire, Piano

Fort Worth, Texas (August 11, 2022) —The Cliburn announces today the new details of the eighth edition of the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition, for non-professional pianists age 35 and older. Originally scheduled for May 2020 and postponed due to the pandemic, the Amateur Competition will now take place October 12–18, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas. Below are the key elements, many altered due to the rescheduling. “We are so pleased to finally be able to welcome these outstanding pianists—who have been preparing for this moment for many years now—to Fort Worth,” said Jacques Marquis, Cliburn president and CEO. “The week will be memorable as…

$1 coin with colour honouring Oscar Peterson (Credit: Alex Reeves)

Newswire | New 1$ Royal Canadian Mint Coin Pays Honours Pianist Oscar Peterson

By Newswire on 11 August 2022 Newswire, Piano, Scena Jazz

Toronto, August 11, 2022 – The Royal Canadian Mint is honouring one of the greatest musicians the world has ever seen by issuing a new $1 commemorative circulation celebrating the life and artistic legacy of Canada’s own Oscar Peterson. Called “the man with four hands” by jazz great and admirer Louis Armstrong, Oscar Peterson rose to the top of the music world through more than six decades of electrifying piano performances and unforgettable compositions such as Hymn to Freedom, Blues Etude and The Canadiana Suite. The coin was unveiled today before family and friends gathered in Toronto’s Roy Thompson Hall,…

During the Awards Gala. From left to right: Marcel Tadokoro, Xiaolu Zang and Jaeden Izik-Dzurko. Third, Second and First Prize, respectively (Credit: Elena Torcida)

Newswire | Canadian Pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko Wins First Prize at Santander Competition

By Newswire on 5 August 2022 Classical Music, Music Competition, Newswire, Piano

Santander, 5 August, 2022 – This afternoon the Awards Ceremony of the 20th Santander International Piano Competition was held at the Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria’s Sala Argenta. The event has had the attendance of Santander’s Mayoress, Gema Igual; the Health Minister of the Cantabria Regional Government, Raúl Pesquera; the Director General of INAEM (National Stage Arts and Music Institute), Joan Francesc Marco; and the President of Fundación Albéniz and that of the Santander International Piano Competition, Paloma O’Shea. At the beginning of the Gala, after the viewing a commemorative video of the 50 years of the Competition and the…

Domonkos Csabay (left) and Jaeden Izik-Dzurko (right)

Newswire | Canadian Pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko Among Six Finalists of 20th Santander Competition

By Newswire on 2 August 2022 Music Competition, Newswire, Piano

Santander, 2 August 2022 – The Jury of the 20th Santander International Piano Competition, having met after the fourth of Semi-final recital sessions of the Competition, held from 29 July to 1 August at the Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria’s Sala Pereda, has unveiled the names of the 6 participants that will pass on to the final stage of the competition. The names and biographies of the finalists are the following: 1 Yu Nitahara Japan 31 years old 2 Marcel Tadokoro France/Japan 28 years old 3 Matyáš Novák Czech Republic 23 years old 4 Xiaolu Zang China 22 years old…

CD Review | Elle (Analekta, 2022)

By Zenith Wolfe on 26 July 2022 CD and Book Reviews, Classical Music, Indigenous, Piano, Strings, Violin

Elle Angèle Dubeau, solo violin; Valérie Milot and Antoine Mallette-Chénier, harp; Lydia Etok and Nina Segalowitz, throat singing; La Pietà Analekta, 2022 Angèle Dubeau, solo violinist and conductor for the string ensemble La Pietà, has decided to use the ensemble’s 25th anniversary album, Elle, to showcase a variety of contemporary female composers. The result? A thrilling experience where the listeners never gets too comfortable with one style. Just as they come to understand the cool and brooding nature of Rebecca Dale’s Winter, for example, they’re surprised by the fiery Inuit throat singing of Katia Makdissi-Warren’s Mémoire. The album is filled with…

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