Disclosure: this article was published without the author’s knowledge of final results.
Finals I: October 23, 2025
The first finals round of the Honens International Piano Competition featured all three finalists performing Franck, Brahms, and Dvořák piano quintets with the Isidore String Quartet. The New York City-based ensemble are recipients of a 2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant and winners of the 14th Banff International String Quartet Competition in 2022. A seemingly promising match of youth, talent, and ambition with each competing pianist.
Yet this pairing conceals a more complicated reality: the Isidore Quartet contributes to each candidate’s evaluation in their final ranking. This adds an uncomfortable dimension to their collaboration: equals, but not really. Making things even trickier, the Achilles’ heel of all these young stars is the relative inexperience in piano quintet playing. Yet, while pianists are expected to accommodate, the strings have no incentive to do so—and they could just as well be off the mark in terms of balance, articulation, or timing. Complain too much, and you may be perceived as “uncooperative,” ruining your chances to snatch the gold. Stay agreeable, and you might reinforce the others’ mistakes. The relatively short time for rehearsal between the announcement of finalists and the first final round did not help sorting through these issues.
In the Lento, brooding and murky landscapes emerged from the long, sustained tones in the strings. The quartet drew inspiration from each other as they showed some of their best work. Yet, they also seemed not to be as receptive to the pianist as she attempted to provide more definition and contour to the overall sound picture. A natural collaborator, Pion wasn’t given the opportunity to make her ideas heard. While brilliant players, the Isidore Quartet is a bit of a musical wolf pack: they breathe, bow, pizzicato and tremolo together forgetting sometimes there is a nine-foot grand piano in the room. And a contestant keen on winning a lofty prize.
In the third movement, Allegro, the lack of cohesion in the group unveiled some immaturity in the quintet, persistently failing to reach conclusive climactic statements. Franck’s lush harmonies washed over the audience like an ocean wave that doesn’t wet. One grows impatient with the constant iterations of confused and unrelated musical episodes joined together by outwardly dramatic punctuation, ultimately losing momentum. Like an unsatisfied lover: one keeps expecting more that never comes. Much like this performance.
Following the quintet, Pion presented her encore: an arrangement of Bach’s Sheep May Safely Graze by Egon Petri. Pion played with lovely rubato and nice pianissimos in the middle section. Sweet and obvious interpretive choices.
Carter Johnson followed with Johannes Brahms’s Piano Quintet in F minor Op. 34. Asserting his maturity and clear musical intent from the onset, he commanded a stronger presence within the quintet dynamic. His playing felt more alive than that of the Isidore Quartet, reinforcing the impression that they play better with each other than they do with piano. Due to an obstinate attention on string sounds, the group lost its initial impact and morphed into a general mush of sound.
While generally beautiful, the Andante did not find the group cohering. Both the Scherzo and the Finale suffered from the same issue: the Isidore Quartet is a strong, but somewhat contained ensemble, too tightly wound to produce moments of substantial musical exchange with the pianist. Their sound is clean, but the lack of flexibility stole away potential magical moments. Johnson was caught in their suffocating embrace, unable to project his true artistic abilities.
Just as she did with cellist Rachel Mercer, Anastasia Vorotnaya defied expectations in Antonin Dvořák’s Piano Quintet in A Major Op. 81. Third time’s a charm, as they say: the quintet finally clicked and started playing great chamber music. Perhaps the swap between first and second violins created better balance in the quartet. Or perhaps Vorotnaya softened the wolf pack, not by trying to match their intensity, but subtly and persistently inviting them to listen to her nuances.
In the opening Allegro, Vorotnaya’s crystalline sound and subtle and inspired playing contributed to the most successful movement of the evening. The second, Dumka: Andante con moto, is one of the most beautiful works written for piano quintet. I had the good fortune of hearing Menahem Pressler play this work with the Cecilia String Quartet live in Montreal many years ago. His pianissimos were unforgettable: barely perceptible, yet exciting and shockingly present. His quartet listened to him much more than the Isidore did to Vorotnaya, altogether playing a bit loud and clumsily—not their best work of the night.
They improved again in the Scherzo: molto vivace showing lively and colourful playing, and exquisite responsiveness to each other. A treat for the ears and a good choice for Vorotnaya, given her natural abilities and chamber music temperament. By the time the Finale: Allegro came around, the quintet had established a cohesive sound and a natural give and take.
Vorotnaya’s encore was Earl Wild’s arrangement of Rachmaninov’s Georgian Song. After giving the most generic and insincere audience address I have ever heard, Vorotnaya played to her strengths: beautiful, flowing playing and gorgeous tonal control across the keyboard.
My choice for winner of this first round: Anastasia Vorotnaya, establishing her complete mastery in chamber music settings, despite the narrowest of repertoire.
Finals II: October 24, 2025
The rapid Scherzo: Vivace was almost flawless until the end. Johnson’s sound didn’t come through in the Intermezzo: Allegro moderato, a difficult movement for pianists due to being synchronized with the orchestra much of the time. The Finale: Allegro tempestuoso featured fantastic feats of acrobatics in the piano part confidently tackled by Johnson. He found the solemnity and darkness in the gorgeous slow theme, walking the right path: emotional, brooding, but not romantic. His cadenzas were excellent, showing his bold risk taking.
The evening closed with Élisabeth Pion’s performance of Sergey Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Major Op. 26. At first, her clear and bright sound stood out as a bold statement in the hall. However, the promising first impression did not persist, turning into an inexperienced performance and a thinly projected sound. Pion’s reliance on fast fingerwork did not allow for sufficient agogic imagination or melodic interest—not her best evening.
In the Tema con variazioni, Pion alternated between angular, static playing, and a habit of smoothing off the end of phrases in a romantic fashion. Lacking the required energy to deliver each variation consistently, she insisted, instead, on infusing phrase endings with deliberate and unconvincing dramatic significance. While the slow, brooding section was well played, it almost felt like a student-level performance. The movement ended with some ensemble issues.
The Allegro ma non troppo was not as confident or impetuous as it should be. A difficult movement from an ensemble perspective, Pion and the conductor managed to stay together, despite some hair-raising moments on the brink of collapse. She projected better in the slow and angular second theme but failed to keep the consistency throughout. Some attention issues did not help to convey confidence or the expected virtuosic bravura at this stage of the competition.
Verdict II: The Laureates
Notwithstanding the title of my previous article, one gladiator did come to play at these finals: Carter Johnson. A serious musician through and through, he always let the music come first, telling a story across each movement of the concerto. Even in the most daring passages, Johnson showed bravery and risk taking. The sheer number of notes this man has played at such a masterful level throughout each stage of the competition is nothing short of impressive.
My choices of laureates are clear: 1) Carter Johnson; 2) Anastasia Vorotnaya; 3) Élisabeth Pion.
A particular prize should go to the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra who demonstrated excellent playing in both supportive and leading capacities. A far cry from the Forth Worth Symphony Orchestra at this summer’s Cliburn, and a competitive match for some of Canada’s very best orchestras.
You can read more about the Honens International Piano Competition here.
