by Daniel Hathaway
For those who advanced to the semifinal round, the performance order remained the same as in the original draw.
ZIAOXUAN LI
First to play was Ziaoxuan Li (13, China), with a portfolio of pieces by J.S. Bach (Prelude & Fugue in B-flat from WTC I), Robert Schumann (Kinderszenen) and Rodion Shchedrin (“Invention in Two Parts” and “Basso Ostinato” from Polyphonic Notebook).
by Daniel Hathaway
On Friday, May 15 at 7:00 pm Round Two of CIPC’s Young Artists Competition got underway at Baldwin Wallace University’s Gamble Auditorium. The evening featured five talented pianists ranging in ages from 12 to 15.
Yerin Yang (12, South Korea) started things off with impressive technique — and graceful, fluttery runs during the first movement, “Allegro,” of Mozart’s Sonata No. 18 in D Major, K. 576. She exhibited these same musical qualities during the second movement, “La Leggierezza,” of Liszt’s Trois études de concert. Yang showed a nice sense of pace in Shostakovich’s Prelude and Fugue in A Minor, Op. 87, No. 2 and displayed some fine hand-crossing in Schumann’s Abegg Variations, Op. 1.
Berea — May 18
Elliot Wuu (15, USA), Leonid Nediak (11, Canada), and Jae Hong Park (15, South Korea) have advanced to the final round in the Junior Division of the Cleveland International Piano Competition’s Young Artists Competition. They will play concerto movements with Gerhardt Zimmermann and the Canton Symphony Orchestra in Gartner Auditorium at the Cleveland Museum of Art on Thursday, May 21 at 7:30, along with the three finalists in the Senior Division, who will be named after the two semi-final rounds on Tuesday, May 19 (see the concert listings for Tuesday’s schedule).
by Mike Telin
The Second Round Senior Division performances continued on Sunday, May 17 at 10:00 am in Gamble Auditorium.
First up was Nima Mirkhoshhal (17, Germany) who brought to life the creatures who come out at night in Bartók’s “The Night’s Music,” from Out of Doors. Next, during Scriabin’s Etude, Op. 42, No. 5 Mirkhoshhal played with a rich, dark sound, never losing track of the musical line. His interpretation of Chopin’s Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat Minor, Op. 31 was explosive in the best way possible.
by Mike Telin
The Junior Division continued with its second round on Saturday, May 16, at 10:00 am in Gamble Auditorium.
Nina Yifang Hu (14, USA) kicked things off with an engaging performance of Liszt’s “La campanella” from his Grandes études de Paganini, which she followed with a nicely-shaped and well-voiced rendition of Chopin’s Nocturne No. 8 in D-flat Major, Op. 27, No. 2. Hu was in her element during Liebermann’s Gargoyles, Op. 29, playing with sensitivity and wonderful technique.
Berea, May 18, 2015
Twelve young pianists will advance to the semifinal rounds in the Cleveland International Piano Competition’s Young Artist Competition. Sessions will take place on Monday afternoon and evening, May 18 (Junior Division) and Tuesday afternoon and evening, May 19 (Senior Division) in Gamble Auditorium at the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory. See our concert listings page for links to ticketing, biographies, repertoire and live streaming of the four sessions.
JUNIOR DIVISION SEMI-FINALISTS:
Xiaoxuan Li (13, China), Elliot Wuu (15, USA), Leonid Nediak (11, Canada), Maxim Lando (12, USA), Jae Hong Park (15, South Korea) & William Yang (13, USA).
SENIOR DIVISION SEMI-FINALISTS:
Jiacheng Xiong (18, China),Yuanfan Yang (18, U.K.), Chaeyoung Park (17, South Korea), Giorgio Trione Bartoli (18, Italy), Evren Ozel (15, USA) & Kyubin Chung (17, South Korea).
by Mike Telin
On Tuesday, May 12, at 7:00 pm in Baldwin Wallace University’s Gamble Auditorium, 25 young pianists representing eight countries will compete for top prizes at the Cleveland International Piano Competition’s Young Artists Competition. Launched by the CIPC in 2003 as a one-day competition for Ohio piano students, the program has been reorganized this year to follow the multi-round format of the Senior version of CIPC. Click here to view the competition’s ten-day schedule.
Why take the Young Artist Competition to this next level? “When I came on board at CIPC and saw the level of playing by the young pianists, it took me by surprise,” CIPC president and chief executive officer Pierre van der Westhuizen said during a telephone conversation. [Read more…]
by Jarrett Hoffman
On Sunday, May 17 at 7:00 pm at Baldwin Wallace University’s Gamble Auditorium, Sean Chen will play the third of four guest recitals at the Cleveland International Piano Competition Young Artists Competition’s newly-formed Institute, to be held concurrently with the ten-day competition. Chen — the winner of the 2013 DeHaan Classical Fellowship of the American Pianists Association and the Crystal Award winner at the 2013 Van Cliburn Competition — will perform works by Brahms, Copland, and Wagner, as well as a set of six etudes by Chopin, Debussy, Scriabin, Bartók, Rachmaninoff, and Ligeti. Tickets are $15.
Chen will begin the program with Brahms’s Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 21, No. 1, a work he also performed for the Cliburn Competition.
by Jarrett Hoffman
“Both the ‘Hammerklavier’ and the ‘White Mass’ are about positive forces in life,” said pianist Alexander Schimpf. “In the end they’re about fighting through something and having a triumphant ending — and both endings are pretty spectacular.”
On Wednesday, May 13, at 10:00 am in Baldwin Wallace University’s Chamber Hall, Alexander Schimpf — the Mixon First Prize Winner at the 2011 CIPC — will present the first master class of the Cleveland International Piano Competition Young Artist Competition’s newly-formed Institute, to be held concurrently with the ten-day competition. Admission is free and open to the public.
Then, on Wednesday, May 20 at 7:00 pm in BW’s Gamble Auditorium, Schimpf will play the final guest recital of the Institute, performing Brahms’s 8 Klavierstücke, Op. 76, Scriabin’s Piano Sonata No. 7, Op. 64 (“White Mass”), and Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 29 in B-flat Major, Op. 106 (“Hammerklavier”).
Arianna Körting, who won first prize in the senior division of the 2012 Cleveland International Piano Competition’s Young Artists Competition, will play the National Anthem at Progressive Field on Friday, April 10 just after 4:00 pm, when the Cleveland Indians play their season opener against the Detroit Tigers.
A CIM graduate, Körting is now studying for her bachelor’s degree at Juilliard. The 2015 CIPC Young Artists Competition for pianists ages 12-18 will run from May 12-21 at Baldwin Wallace and at the Cleveland Museum of Art.