Clark Vann Griffith, 52
Retired database programmer
Fort Worth, Texas
United States

Clark Vann Griffith was the third-prize winner here in 2007 and took second prize in 2011. The Fort Worth resident’s Cliburn connection doesn’t end there: As a child in Phoenix, he was a student of 1977 Cliburn Gold Medalist Steven De Groote. Mr. Vann Griffith was a composition major at the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, and in ensuing years, has worked as a programmer, website developer, classical music announcer, and orchestral pianist. A chamber-music aficionado, Mr. Vann Griffith is motivated to compete again this year because he enjoys being a performing conduit for the audience, enjoying helping “someone I’ve never met hear something familiar in an utterly new way.” When he’s not playing piano, Mr. Vann Griffith enjoys watching movies, solving puzzles, and the perks of being married and owning cats.

COMPETITION REPERTOIRE

Preliminary Round
BACH   Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp Minor, WTC I, BWV 859
BRAHMS   Intermezzo in A Major, op. 76, no. 6

Quarterfinal Round
CHOPIN   Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major, op. 47
SCHUMANN   Arabeske in C Major, op. 18

Semifinal Round
WAGNER-GOULD   Siegfried-Idyll
VANN GRIFFITH   Largo, after Chopin (2016)
MENDELSSOHN   Rondo capriccioso, op. 14

Final Round
SHOSTAKOVICH   Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Major, op. 102: I. Allegro