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I am very pleased to be part of this journey with the Cliburn
Competition. Organizing a competition is a long process, but the
most important part is, without doubt, to recruit the best
candidates.
An international competition is known by the quality of its
winners. You can produce the best organized competition and have
the best orchestra and the best conductor, but if your winners are
not top level, then your competition will not have a high standard
recognition. Radu Lupu, 1966 Cliburn gold medalist, who will
be in concert in Fort Worth at Bass Hall on January 28 (my
marketing director will be pleased with this one!), is one of the
most prestigious pianists in the world and since the 60s carries
the name of the Cliburn Competition everywhere. His standard of
excellence and his accomplishments in the music world are still a
target to reach for every pianist competing in the Cliburn.
One of the unique qualities of the Cliburn is its international
Screening Auditions. There is not a competition in the world that
does such a significant talent search as this. Most competitions
evaluate applicants on CD or DVD. The problems with this method are
important but not unsolvable. Bad recordings, bad hall, bad pianos,
etc. A candidate could also redo and redo his piece until it's
perfect. When he or she comes live, that's another story… The
biggest advantage of live auditions is listening. No
second take, no second try. Because the Cliburn brings five jury
members who are eminent personalities of the piano world to each
audition, the final judgment is fair for every candidate. Also, the
Cliburn makes sure that the candidates are playing in nice recital
halls on nice pianos.
Organizing a successful competition means providing the
candidates the best and, most importantly, the same conditions. The
evaluation will be more accurate and fair for everyone.
We have begun the Screening Auditions in Hong Kong. Next we'll
travel to Hannover in Germany, Moscow in Russia, Milan in Italy,
and finally New York and Fort Worth in the USA. (Click here for
the full schedule.)
As the screening jury does its job well, the cream will rise to
the top at the end of the process. Then the 30 selected candidates
will come to Fort Worth in May to perform in three different rounds
in front of an international jury of 13 members.
There is much to tell about the Competition and how we're
discovering the best musicians in the world. I'll be back…
-- Jacques
Souvenir de voyage: Hong Kong is everything you
see in movies, high buildings and lots of lights and people. I
found a nice Starbucks near the Victoria Harbor, and I go take my
coffee there in the morning. Nice and quiet view of the harbor. I
cannot be here and not think about the James Clavell book I read
when I was young: Taï-Pan. Since I am here, I am looking
for the church at the top of Victoria Peak. :)
Travel tips: If your baggage gets lost (these
things happen), Hong Kong is the best place to shop, a lot of
choices and a lot of good buys. I bought new clothes
yesterday…
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