by Daniel Hathaway

Cleveland, OH — July 27, 2011

As Round One of the 2011 Cleveland International Piano Competition got underway at the Cleveland Play House’s Bolton Theater this afternoon, it was time to get to know an almost entirely new group of musicians.

Twenty-six pianists will have 25-30 minutes each over the next three days to seize our attention and tell us — through their choice of repertory and its execution — who they are as musicians.

Ms. Anna Fedorova (21, Ukraine) drew the first of this afternoon’s four slots, and began with a big, bravura performance of Beethoven’s early Sonata in A, op. 2, no. 2. She impressed us with her strength and the extreme range of dynamic contrasts she drew from the piano, though apparent nervousness made for some uneven runs and dropped notes. She followed Beethoven with the famous Chopin Etude in a, op. 25, no. 11, “Winter Wind”, a piece that begins with a few bars of introspection and suddenly turns into a maelstrom. Ms. Fedorova’s performance ebbed and flowed like an ocean.
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