by Daniel Hathaway
On April 23, Piano Cleveland, host of the Cleveland International Piano Competition, released the names of the sixteen quarterfinalists who will compete in the 2024 contest this summer.
Marking its 50th year, the competition got underway in February, when 55 contestants selected for its first round played in Cleveland and Paris.
The semifinalists will come to Cleveland this summer for three weeks of free public performances and ticketed competition events between July 28 and August 10, culminating in concerto performances with The Cleveland Orchestra and the bestowing of awards including the $75,000 Mixon First Prize.
This time around, the competition has revised its guidelines to allow contestants to play a broader range of repertoire. Piano Cleveland president Yaron Kohlberg said “the goal is to identify the future leaders in the piano world. These sixteen pianists are more than excellent musicians. These are dynamic artists who are reimagining what classical musicianship looks like — and sounds like — in a global community. This year’s competition is charting new territory.”
Here are the sixteen:
Robert Bily, 27, Czech Republic
Michelle Candotti, 28, Italy
Antonio Chen Guang, 29, China
Leo de María, 28, Spain
Jacopo Giovannini, 26, Italy
Giuseppe Guarrera, 32, Italy
Mirabelle Kajenjeri, 26, France
Jakub Kuszlik, 27, Poland
Maxim Lando, 21, United States
Khanh Nhi Luong, 28, Vietnam
Jonathan Mamora, 29, United States
Arisa Onoda, 28, Japan
Evren Ozel, 25, United States
Zhu Wang, 27, Canada
Zijian Wei, 25, China
Zihao Wu, 26, China
Executive director Marissa Moore noted in a press release that the competition officially starts on July 28 with an opening ceremony at the Hanna Theatre, when contestants will team up to perform popular music transcriptions. But the pianists will arrive a week earlier to give free public performances in the greater Cleveland area via The Concert Truck — a mobile venue featuring a piano. “Part of the vision of Piano Cleveland is to engage the public,” Moore said. “We want the piano to pop up in unexpected places and be enjoyed outside the concert hall.”
All sixteen will compete in the Quarter-Finals from July 29-31, featuring solo performances. Eight will move on to the Semi-Finals from August 1-4, which will include solo recitals and chamber music. Four finalists will then play salon concerts on August 6 and 7 as well as participate in the competition’s signature finale of concerto performances with The Cleveland Orchestra on August 9 and 10.
For ticket pricing and packages as well as full contestant biographies and repertoire, visit the Piano Cleveland website.
Published on ClevelandClassical.com April 24, 2024.
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