PLEASE NOTE: Two of the competitors were unable to attend. The release below has been updated to reflect the changes.
Twenty-two of the world’s top teen-aged pianists will vie for prizes in the Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition next month. The week-long event of adjudicated performances, master classes, and recitals by award-winning guest artists—all of which are open to the public—begins Sunday, July 12.
“These young artists are among the best in the new, young generation of pianists,” said Douglas Humpherys, chair of the piano department at Eastman and founding director of the competition. “The audience has the chance to hear these tremendously talented and seasoned performers as they showcase their artistic achievements and build their musical careers.”
The pre-screened competitors are between the ages of 15 to 18 and come from eight different countries: the United States, Canada, Korea, China, Australia, Russia, England, and Italy. Each will play in a master class and present an hour of solo music over two preliminary rounds Monday, July 13, through Thursday, July 16, in Kilbourn Hall.
Five finalists will be chosen to perform a movement of a piano concerto with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Eastman professor and conductor Neil Varon, in Kodak Hall on Saturday, July 18. Winners will be announced after the judges’ deliberations following the last performance. The Final Round performances are made possible through the generosity of Ms. Deborah Ronnen and Mr. Sherman Levey.
Guest recitalists
The event opens with a concert by Russian pianist Andrey Gugnin at 3 p.m. July 12 in Kilbourn Hall. Gugnin won the First Prize and the Gold Medal in the 2014 Gina Bachauer International Artists Piano Competition. His awards also include first prize at the Citta di Cantu International Piano Competition in Italy; and second prizes in the Beethoven International Piano Competition in Vienna, the International Svetislav Stancic Piano Competition in Croatia, and the International Piano Competition of the Republic of San Marino. Gugnin has performed in festivals and with orchestras in more than 20 countries. His recording of both Shostakovich concertos with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra was released on the Delos label in 2007. He and his piano duo partner Vadym Kholodenko also made a Delos recording of four-hand music by Debussy, Ravel, and Rachmaninoff.
Yen-Yu (Jenny) Chen, who was the Silver Medalist in the 2010 Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition, will present a guest recital at 7:30 p.m. July 17 in Hatch Recital Hall. Chen has won first place in a number of national and international competitions since 2007, including the Albert Greenfield Competition, Kawai Piano Competition, the Baroque Competition, the Steinbach Music Competition, and the Vienna National Piano Competition. Chen is one of the finalists chosen for the Leeds International Piano Competition in England this August. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Curtis Institute of Music, a master’s from Yale, and will begin her doctoral studies in piano at Eastman this fall. Chen’s concert is sponsored by Mr. George and Mrs. Vee Angle.
Competitors, Judges, Prizes
This year’s competitors are: Yanfeng Bai, 16, China; Anna Boonyanit,16, United States; Sasha Bult-Ito, 17, United States; Jerry Xue-Hao Chen, 17, Canada; Shangru Du, 17, China; Matthew Figel, 18, United States; Misha Galant, 17, United States; Vanessa Haynes, 18, United States; Oscar Jiang, 17, Australia; Jeong-Min Kim, 17, United States; Brian Le, 17, United States; Tommy Jing Yu Leo, 15, England; Piaoru Li, 18, China; Anastasiia Maksiuta, 17, Russia; Yaowen Mei, 18, China; Evelyn Mo, 16, United States; Sohyun Shim, 16, Korea; Alessandro Villalva, 16, Italy; Annling Wang, 15, United States; Victor Xie, 17, United States; Siyuan Xu, 16, China; and Taewoong Yoo, 16, Korea.
Competition judges are: Alvin Chow, a competition prize winner and the Ruth Strickland Gardner Associate Professor of Piano and chair of the piano department at Oberlin College & Conservatory; Argentine/American pianist Mirian Conti, an award-winning recording artist who organizes and adjudicates competitions, directs festivals, and promotes promising young artists through master classes and special prizes; Ankie Foell, who won the Rotterdam Youth Piano Competition at age 13 and has presented concerts throughout the world, including the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand; Alexandra Nguyen, assistant professor of collaborative piano at the University of Colorado Boulder, who has performed throughout the United States and Canada; and Jack Winerock, professor of piano at the University of Kansas and a prizewinner in the International Bach Competition, who has toured Europe, Asia, South America, and the United States.
First prize in the Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition includes a Gold Medal and a cash award of $10,000. The second place winner will receive a Silver Medal and $5,000; third place carries a Bronze Medal and $3,000 award.
Admission to the master classes and preliminary rounds is free. The guest recitals and final round with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra are ticketed.
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Calendar Listings:
Sunday, July 12
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Opening Concert: Russian pianist Andrey Gugnin. Gold Medalist, 2014 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition
3 p.m.
Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St.
Tickets: $20, $15, $10 reserved seating (discount UR faculty/staff and students) available in advance at the Eastman Theater Box Office, 433 East Main Street; by phone (585) 454-2100, or online https://www.esm.rochester.edu/concerts/ ; and at the box office one hour prior to the performance.
Monday, July 13
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Master Class
9:30 a.m. – Noon
Hatch Recital Hall, 433 East Main St.
Free
Monday, July 13
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Preliminary Round I
1:30 – 3:30 p.m.; 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.; 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St.
Free
Tuesday, July 14
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Master Class
9:30 a.m. – Noon
Hatch Recital Hall, 433 East Main St.
Free
Tuesday, July 14
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Preliminary Round I
1:30 – 3:30 p.m.; 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.; 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St.
Free
Wednesday, July 15
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Master Class
9:30 a.m. – Noon
Hatch Recital Hall, 433 East Main St.
Free
Wednesday, July 15
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Preliminary Round II
1:30 – 3:30 p.m.; 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.; 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St.
Free
Thursday, July 16
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Master Class
9:30 a.m. – Noon
Hatch Recital Hall, 433 East Main St.
Free
Thursday, July 16
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Preliminary Round II
1:30 – 3:30 p.m.; 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.; 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. Finalists announced after the completion of the evening round.
Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St.
Free
Friday, July 17
Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition Laureate Concert: Yen-Yu (Jenny) Chen, Silver Medalist, 2010 Eastman International Piano Competition. Sponsored by Mr. George and Mrs. Vee Angle
7:30 p.m.
Hatch Recital Hall, 433 East Main St.
Tickets: $15 General Admission (discount UR faculty/staff and students), available in advance at the Eastman Theater Box Office, 433 East Main Street; by phone (585) 454-2100, or online https://www.esm.rochester.edu/concerts/ ; and at the box office one hour prior to the performance.
Saturday, July 18
Eastman Young Artist International Piano Competition Final Round – Concerto Performances with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Neil Varon, Conductor. Winners announced after final round. Sponsored by Deborah Ronnen and Sherman Levey
7:30 p.m.
Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre, 60 Gibbs St.
Tickets: $25 General Admission (discount UR faculty/staff and students), available in advance at the Eastman Theater Box Office, 433 East Main Street; by phone (585) 454-2100, or online https://www.esm.rochester.edu/concerts/ ; and at the box office one hour prior to the performance.