by Daniel Hathaway
After several days of preliminary rounds at the Oberlin Conservatory, the number of contestants in the 2025 Cooper International Piano Competition was suddenly reduced from 20 to six semi-finalists who advanced to perform concertos on Tuesday, July 22 accompanied by a second pianist. And then there were three.
On Thursday evening, July 24, the competition moved to Severance Music Center, where the trio of contestants who had advanced to the final round repeated their concertos, this time with The Cleveland Orchestra under the direction of Samy Rachid. It was an impressive evening of music making.
We shared our impressions of their playing during the concerto round on Tuesday. On Thursday, they would perform under very different conditions. How did they interact with a full symphony orchestra? The answer — brilliantly. [Read more…]
After two days of semi-final rounds in which 20 contestants each performed 40-minute recitals, the field of the Cooper International Piano Competition was narrowed to six. On Tuesday, July 22 in Oberlin Conservatory’s Warner Concert Hall those six pianists performed full concertos with piano accompaniment in afternoon and evening sessions. Here are our impressions.