2013 Silver Medalist Beatrice Rana, returned to Bass Hall on September 30, 2014, leaving Competition audiences riveted.
Program:
BACH Partita No. 1 in B-flat Major, BWV 825;
CHOPIN Sonata No. 2 in B-flat Minor, op. 35;
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 6 in A Major, op. 82
ALIM BEISEMBAYEV
Kazahkstan | Age 17
2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015 I TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA
Program:
CHOPIN Fantasie in F Minor, op. 49
LIGETI Etude No. 10 “Der Zauberlehrling”
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Born in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Alim Beisembayev has given recitals in London, Moscow, and Sacile (Italy), and performed with the Svetlanov Orchestra of Moscow, New Russia Orchestra, and the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra, working with conductors Mark Gorenstein, Evgeny Bushkov, and Dmitry Liss. Competition credits include third prize at the 2014 International Liszt Competition for Young Pianists in Weimar and first prize in the 2008 International Televised Competition for Young Musicians “Nutcracker” in Moscow. Alim began piano lessons at age 5, and moved to the United Kingdom in 2010 to attend the Purcell School for Young Musicians, first studying with Rustem Hayroudinoff and now with Tessa Nicholson. In his spare time, he pursues ballroom dancing, acting, and learning languages.
WEI LUO
China | Age 16
2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015 I TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA
Program:
BACH Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp Minor, Book II, BWV 873
CHOPIN Nocturne in G Major, op. 37, no. 2
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Born in Shenzhen, Wei Luo began piano lessons at age 5, and gave her debut recital in Hong Kong at age 6. Winner of the 11th Chopin International Competition for Young Pianists in Poland (2010) and the 2nd Rachmaninov International Piano Competition for Young Pianists in Frankfurt (2010), she made her orchestra debut with the Shanghai Philharmonic in 2010 after winning its concerto competition. After studying at the Music Middle School Affiliated with the Shanghai Conservatory, Wei moved to Philadelphia in 2012 to learn from Gary Graffman and Robert McDonald at The Curtis Institute of Music, where she was selected in her second year as the only pianist in the annual Dean’s Honors Recital. She also has lessons from Eleanor Wong and has taken master classes with Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, Seymour Lipkin, Abbey Simon, and Nelita True.
EVELYN MO
United States | Age 16
2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015 I TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA
Program:
HAYDN Sonata in C Major, Hob. XVI:50: I. Allegro
CHOPIN Etude in F Major, op. 10, no. 8
SCHUMANN Variations on the Name “Abegg,” op. 1
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, op. 14: IV. Vivace
Evelyn Mo made her orchestra debut at age 13 with the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, and has since performed with the Orchestra of Northern New York, Camerata New York, and Shenandoah University Symphonic Orchestra. Currently under the guidance of John O’Conor, she has previously studied with Thomas Mastroianni, and attended the Lee University and Southeastern Piano Festivals and the International Institute for Young Musicians. In addition to piano, Evelyn plays the violin and is active at her school as member of the yearbook staff, writer for the newspaper, and coordinator for Tomorrow’s Women in Science and Technology.
ROGER SHEN
United States | Age 16
2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015 I TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA
Program:
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, op. 14: IV. Vivace
HAYDN Sonata in C Minor, Hob. XVI:20: I. Moderato
LISZT Transcendental Etude No. 4 “Mazeppa”
A winner of top prizes at the Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition, Walgreens National Concerto Competition, Aloha International Piano Concerto Competition, and Chicago Steinway Young Artist Competition, Roger Shen has played with the Northbrook Symphony, Midwest Young Artist Symphony, Hawaii Youth, Phillips Exeter Academy, and Most Arts Orchestras. He made his Carnegie Hall debut at Weill Hall in 2010, and has been featured on WFMT’s Introductions. Currently enrolled at Phillips Exeter Academy, Roger is a student of Dr. Jon Sakata; when at home in Illinois, he studies with Dr. Matt Hagle. As an active member of the Academy’s student music outreach group, he performs bi-weekly concerts for various nursing homes around New Hampshire. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, swimming, chess, fishing, and ping pong.
GORDEN CHENG, 35
Systems engineer
San Diego, California
United States
2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Semifinal Round – Thursday, June 23, 2016
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Fort Worth, Texas, USA
An information technology and network security executive, Gorden Cheng received a bachelor’s degree in computer science in 2003 from the University of Texas at Dallas, and worked at two Dallas-area computer companies until 2004 before relocating to Southern California. He has taken private piano lessons for years, and the practice has netted results: From 2011–2015, he placed in amateur competitions in Paris (2011), Chicago (2012), Colorado Springs (2012), Warsaw (2012), Washington, D.C. (2012), and Boston (2015). Currently head of technology operations for eMolecules, Inc., Mr. Cheng calls himself a computer nerd and Internet plumber. He enjoys spending time with his wife and children and is a huge fan of FC Barcelona and the UFC.
Program:
PROKOFIEV, “Young Juliet;” “Mercutio;” and “Montagues and Capulets” from Romeo and Juliet, op. 75
STRAVINSKY, Trois Mouvements de Petrouchka
2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Quarterfinal Round
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Simon Finlow, 60
Retired IT project manager/database engineer
Washington, D.C.
United Kingdom/United States
Born in Lincoln, England, Simon Finlow began playing piano at age 4 and studied with Imogen Cooper in his late teenage years. He received a bachelor’s degree in music from Oxford University in 1977, and a doctorate in musicology from Cambridge University in 1985. Highlights for Dr. Finlow during this time included performances of the Brahms B-flat Major Concerto and Rhapsody in Blue with orchestra. “Hard reality,” he says, forced him along another path towards a career in IT engineering and management, following his move to the United States in 1985. Two key events in 2013 changed the direction of Dr. Finlow’s life: He quit his high-stress job that was taking a serious toll on his health, and he attended the Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. After learning about the Amateur Competition, he was inspired to find a new piano teacher, to rebuild his repertoire, and to perform again. When he is not playing, Dr. Finlow enjoys running marathons, delving into theories of cosmology and quantum physics, playing Gran Turismo on PlayStation, and helping his wife maintain a delicate peace between their 14-year-old twins.
Program:
CHOPIN, Fantaisie in F Minor, op. 49
PROKOFIEV, Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83: III. Precipitato
2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Preliminary Round
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Janet Sommerfeld, 53
Freelance writer/producer
Palos Verdes Estates, California
United States
Janet Sommerfeld began her studies at 6 and played throughout high school in California. During her sophomore year in college, she became an exchange student at Waseda University in Tokyo, where she studied with Hideo Sakoda and Hiroko Nakamura. While in Asia, she performed Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Edelweiss Symphony Orchestra. Upon her return to the United States, she completed her degree in broadcast journalism from USC and pursued a career in television news and marketing for Fox Broadcasting and CBS. After a nearly 25-year absence from the piano, Ms. Sommerfeld has returned to music making. Recent performances include appearances as a soloist with the California Concerto Weekend Festival Orchestra at the West Valley College Theater (Saratoga, California). Away from the piano, Ms. Sommerfeld also enjoys reading, traveling, watching anything related to Star Trek, and spending time with her husband and daughter.
Program:
RAVEL, Jeux d’eau
PROKOFIEV, “Mercutio” from Romeo and Juliet, op. 75
2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Preliminary Round
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Noah DeGarmo, M.D., 38
Physician
Dallas, Texas
United States
Noah DeGarmo began private piano lessons at 7, and started playing the oboe at age 10. In addition to performing with the Massachusetts Youth Wind Ensemble and Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, he took master classes at the New England Conservatory before entering medical school in New York. After a residency in emergency medicine at Northwestern University, he moved to Dallas, where he currently serves as medical director at Baylor Surgical Center at Las Colinas. Dr. DeGarmo was a semifinalist at the Chicago Amateur Piano Competition in 2010 (where he received Best Performance of a Contemporary Work) and a finalist at the contest in 2012. Since he was 18, Dr. DeGarmo has suffered from tendinitis, which he has lectured about as it relates to performing. In his downtime, he likes to cook, entertain, garden, travel, and spend time with his golden retriever, Mayzie.
Program:
PROKOFIEV, Sarcasms, op. 17, nos. 1-4
Shuan Hern Lee
Australia | Age 16
Semifinal Round Recital – Wednesday, June 5, 2019 – 9:12 p.m. CDT
Caruth Auditorium, SMU I Dallas, Texas, USA
Program:
HAMELIN Toccata on “L’hommè armé”
CHOPIN Nocturne in C Minor, op. 48, no. 1
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
BALAKIREV Islamey (Oriental Fantasy)
Australian pianist Shuan Hern Lee has performed across his country and Europe, and in the United States, China, Russia, and Indonesia, including appearances with the Minnesota, Moscow State, Ukraine, Armenia, Western Australia, and Jakarta Symphony Orchestras. He has been with his teacher, Yoon Sen Lee, for 14 years—since he was 2½ years old. He currently studies at the University of Western Australia, and also with Ingrid Fliter at the International Piano Academy Incontri Col Maestro in Imola, Italy. Among his many accolades are 11 first-place finishes at international piano competitions around the world. In his time away from the piano, he likes playing table tennis and with nerf guns, writing poetry, and studying philosophy.
“I believe that classical music and art will be one of the most important subjects in life for centuries to come. Technology is advancing at a terrifying and amazing speed, but no matter how advanced AI or robotics will turn out to be, music can never be substituted.”
Johann Zhao
Austria | Age 15
Preliminary Round Recital – Friday, May 31, 2019 – 3:54 p.m.
Program:
BACH Prelude and Fugue in G Major, BWV 860
LISZT La campanella from Paganini Etudes
SHOSTAKOVICH Prelude and Fugue in D-flat Major, op. 87, no. 15
PROKOFIEV Toccata, op. 11
Salzburg-born Johann Zhao has five competition wins to his name in Austria, Czech Republic, and Germany, as well as a gold medal at the AADGT (American Association for Development of the Gifted and Talented) in 2017, which led to his Carnegie Hall debut. A student of Cordelia Höfer-Teutsch at the University Mozarteum Salzburg since 2013, he made his recital and concerto debuts in 2015 at Salzburg’s Summer Schlosskonzerte Mirabell. He has performed with the Bad Reichenhall Philharmonic and will perform with the Berliner Sinfonieorchester in Philharmonie in April. He is also a passionate chamber musician, a self-proclaimed YouTuber, runs marathons, sings in choir, and writes pop music.
“Through playing music, I came to understand the invisible world better, instead of relying on perception only. I am interested also in religion and history, and it seems to me that every religious movement or political change has always been accompanied by making music to awake emotion.”
LINDSAY GARRITSON
United States | Age 25
Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital I
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
LISZT Ballade No. 2 in B Minor
SCHUBERT Klavierstuck in E-flat Major, D. 946, no. 2
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Second-prize winner at the 2011 Montreal International Musical Competition and winner of the 2011 Yale School of Music Woolsey Concerto Competition, Lindsay Garritson has performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and at Steinway Hall in New York. She has taken the stage as soloist with the Atlantic Classical Orchestra, the European Philharmonic Orchestra in France, the Orchestre Métropolitain in Montreal, the Orquestra Sinfónica Barra Mansa in Brazil, the St. Louis Youth Orchestra, and the Yale Philharmonic Orchestra, among others. Ms. Garritson holds a Bachelor of Arts in music from Principia College and a Master of Music and artist diploma from the Yale School of Music.
NIKOLAY KHOZYAINOV
Russia | Age 20
Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Semifinal Round Recital
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 31 in A-flat Major, op. 110
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
THEOFANIDIS Birichino
LISZT-BUSONI Fantasy on Two Themes from Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro
Nikolay Khozyainov made his debut at age seven in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. He has since garnered numerous prizes, including top prizes at the Dublin and Sydney International Piano Competitions and the Moscow International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition for Young Pianists. Additionally, he was the youngest finalist competing in the International Chopin Piano Competition in 2010. He has appeared with the Sydney Symphony, Tokyo Symphony, and Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestras, among others. Mr. Khozyainov released his first CD, featuring works by Chopin and Liszt, on the Accord label in 2010. He followed this in 2012 with an all-Chopin disc released by the Chopin Institute in Warsaw and another recording on the JVC Victor label in Japan. He is currently enrolled at the Moscow P.I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory.
CLAIRE HUANGCI
United States | Age 24
Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Semifinal Recital
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
THEOFANDIS Birichino
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 26 in E-flat Major, op. 81a (“Les adieux”)
SCHUMANN Symphonic Études, op. 13
PROKOFIEV Romeo and Juliet before Parting, op. 75, no. 10
Born in Rochester, New York, Claire Huangci has made debuts with the Munich Chamber Orchestra, the St. Petersburg Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, and with various other orchestras across Europe and the United States. She has appeared in recital as part of the Ravinia, Verbier, International Keyboard Institute, and Kissinger Summer Festivals, and at the Salle Cortot in Paris, Carnegie Hall in New York, Bonn Beethovenhaus, and in other venues throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States. She recently recorded her first CD for Berlin Classics, which will be released in fall of 2013. Ms. Huangci graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in 2007 and has studied at the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover since 2007.
NIKITA MNDOYANTS
Russia | Age 24
Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital I
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, op. 11
CHOPIN Polonaise-fantaise in A-flat Major, op. 61
PROKOFIEV Scherzo, op. 12, no. 10
Born into a family of professional musicians, Nikita Mndoyants began to play piano and compose music at an early age. He gave his first public recital when he was ten, and one year later released his first recording of a live performance at the Sibelius Academy Concert Hall in Helsinki. Since then, Mr. Mndoyants has toured throughout China, Estonia, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States. He has been invited to perform in several festivals, including the Chopin Festival in Duszniki-Zdroj, the International Keyboard Institute and Festival in New York, and a festival dedicated to the World Economic Forum in Davos. His compositions are featured on two recordings released by Classical Records in 2007. Mr. Mndoyants is currently pursuing postgraduate studies at the Moscow P.I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory, where he also received a degree in piano and composition.
NIKITA ABROSIMOV
Russia | Age 24
Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital II
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
RACHMANINOV
Prelude in D Minor, op. 23, no. 3
Prelude in D Major, op. 23, no. 4
Prelude in C Minor, op. 23, no. 7
PROKOFIEV
Sonata No. 8 in B-flat Major, op. 84
Nikita Abrosimov began studying piano at the age of six and made his recital debut when he was fourteen. He has since made appearances at La Scala in Milan, Alice Tully Hall in New York, Mariinsky Concert Hall in St. Petersburg, and in venues throughout France, Italy, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, South Korea, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States. He has recently performed with the Nizhny Novgorod Symphony, Kostroma Symphony, and Stanford Symphony Orchestras, as well as with the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under the baton of Valery Gergiev in St. Petersburg’s Stars of the White Nights Festival. Mr. Abrosimov earned degrees at the Balakirev Music College and at Indiana University South Bend. He currently lives in London, where he studies at the Royal College of Music.
GIUSEPPE GRECO
Italy | Age 23
Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital II
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
CHOPIN Polonaise-fantaisie in A-flat Major, op. 61
PROKOFIEV Sonata No.8 in B-flat Major, op. 84
Giuseppe Greco began studying piano at the age of ten, and just five years later graduated with highest marks. He has performed at the Tuscia Opera festival with the Viterbo Orchestra and in major venues throughout Italy. He was first-prize winner at the 2009 Arcangelo Speranza International Piano Competition in Taranto, Italy, and in 2011, was awarded the Yamaha Scholarship, offered to the top Italian pianist by the Yamaha Music Foundation of Europe. In 2010, he received a medal from the president of Italy. Mr. Greco recently graduated from the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome.
SERGEY BELYAVSKIY
Russia | Age 23
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Quarterfinal Round Recital – Tuesday, May 30, 2017 – 2:30 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
BEETHOVEN Variations and Fugue in E-flat Major, op. 35 (“Eroica”)
LISZT Faribolo Pasteur in G Minor
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, op. 14
Born in Moscow to a family of musicians, Sergey Belyavskiy began playing piano at age 5 and enrolled at Central Music School under the Moscow State Conservatory at age 9. He won his first piano competition at 11, and has since won prizes at the Liszt, Sydney, Canals, and eMuse competitions, among others. His concerto appearances include the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, Israel Sinfonietta Beer Sheva, the Symphony Orchestra of Valles, and the Moscow and Kazakhstan state orchestras. His recitals at major concert venues include Carnegie Hall in New York, Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow, and Salle Cortot in Paris. Mr. Belyavskiy has attended master classes with Van Cliburn (in Moscow in 2011), Andrzej Jasinski, Leslie Howard, Yoheved Kaplinsky, and András Schiff, and completed studies at the Moscow Conservatory with Eliso Virsaladze in 2016. He now studies with Arie Vardi at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University. Mr. Belyavskiy has released three solo CDs, most recently of Chopin’s 24 Etudes. Besides music, his passions include swimming, running, dancing, and reading.
GEORGY TCHAIDZE
Russia | Age 29
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Quarterfinal Round Recital – Tuesday, May 30, 2017 – 10:00 a.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
SCHUBERT Impromptu in A-flat Major, D. 935, op. 142, no. 2
SCHUBERT Impromptu in B-flat Major, D. 935, op. 142, no. 3
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 8 in B-flat Major, op. 84
Georgy Tchaidze was born in St. Petersburg and earned his master’s degree at the Moscow Conservatory. He has won prizes at several competitions, including first at the 2009 Honens International Piano Competition, fourth at the 2016 Cleveland International Piano Competition, and first at the 2015 Top of the World International Piano Competition in Tromsø, Norway. Mr. Tchaidze has performed throughout Europe, North America, and Asia, including at Wigmore Hall in London, Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, Konzerthaus Berlin, Het Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. He performed with Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra under Pinchas Zukerman and with the Cleveland Orchestra with conductor Bramwell Tovey. As a chamber artist, he tours with the Cecilia and Borodin string quartets. Mr. Tchaidze has released three recordings on the Honens label: a live recording with the Cecilia String Quartet, an all-Schubert album, and a disc of works by Medtner, Mussorgsky and Prokofiev. He studies in Berlin, where his other passions include literature, cinema, and nature.
Martin James Bartlett
United Kingdom | Age 20
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Quarterfinal Round Recital – Monday, May 29, 2017 – 4:25 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
SCARLATTI Sonata in E Major, K. 380
SCARLATTI Sonata in B Minor, K. 27
GRANADOS “El amor y la muerte” from Goyescas, op. 11
SCHUMANN-LISZT Widmung
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Martin James Bartlett won the title of BBC Young Musician in 2014 and has since appeared regularly on BBC TV and radio broadcasts. In 2016, he performed as part of Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday Thanksgiving Service at St. Paul’s Cathedral, broadcast live on BBC One. He also was one of 27 international artists, including Elton John and Stevie Wonder, chosen by the BBC to record a cover of the Beach Boys’ classic God Only Knows. Mr. Bartlett is currently studying with Vanessa Latarche at the Royal College of Music as a Foundation Scholar. He has performed at the Royal Albert Hall, Barbican Centre, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wigmore Hall, Cadogan Hall, Usher Hall, and Steinway Hall in London. Internationally, he has performed across France, Monaco, Italy, Russia, and Serbia. He made his BBC Proms debut in 2015 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. He also has performed with the BBC Concert, BBC Symphony, Bournemouth Symphony, and European Union Chamber orchestras. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, traveling, and wine collecting.
TONY YIKE YANG
Canada | Age 18
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital – Sunday, May 28, 2017 – 10:00 a.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 30 in E Major, op. 109
HAMELIN Toccata on “L’homme armé”
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Tony Yike Yang is enrolled at Harvard University and the New England Conservatory of Music, where he studies with Wha Kyung Byun. He previously studied in the Pre-College Division at The Juilliard School and at the Taylor Academy of the Royal Conservatory in Toronto. Mr. Yang won fifth prize at the 2015 International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition as well as the Ewa & Włodzimierz Kamirski Award for the Youngest Finalist, and earned a Jury Discretionary Award at the First Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition in 2015. He also has won top prizes at Thomas & Evon Cooper, Hilton Head, Bösendorfer and Yamaha USASU International Junior, and Gina Bachauer International Junior piano competitions. He has appeared with The Cleveland Orchestra, Warsaw Philharmonic, Montreal’s Orchestre Metropolitain, and Toronto Sinfonietta. When he’s not playing piano, Mr. Yang loves badminton, ping-pong, video games, swimming, movies, and spicy food.
YUTONG SUN
China | Age 21
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital – Friday, May 26, 2017 – 9:25 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
HAMELIN Toccata on “L’homme armé”
SHOSTAKOVICH Prelude and Fugue in D Minor, op. 87, no. 24
CHOPIN Nocturne in C Minor, op. 48, no. 1
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Yutong Sun studies with Alexander Korsantia at the New England Conservatory. He has won awards at a number of competitions, including third prize at the 2016 Maria Canals International Piano Competition in Barcelona, first prize at the 2012 Jaén Award International Piano Competition (Spain), and second prize at the 2011 New Orleans International Piano Competition for Young Artists. He made his recital debut at age 10 in Beijing and his orchestra debut with the Orchestra of Granada in Spain at age 16. Mr. Sun has performed with orchestras and in recital in China, France, Spain, and the United States. In 2013, he released a recording of a recital performance as part of the Laureate Series on the Naxos label. When not playing music, he likes to watch movies and sports.
YURY FAVORIN
Russia | Age 30
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital – Friday, May 26, 2017 – 8:20 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
PROKOFIEV Four Etudes, op. 2
TCHAIKOVSKY Two Pieces, op. 10
HAMELIN Toccata on “L’homme armé”
LISZT Réminiscences de Puritains de Bellini
Moscow native Yury Favorin started his music instruction at age 5, and pursued piano, clarinet, and composition at the Gnessins Moscow Secondary Special School. He continued his education at the Moscow Conservatory and at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. In 2016, he was invited to be on the faculty of the Moscow Conservatory. Mr. Favorin has won prizes at the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels and the Olivier Messiaen International Piano Competition in Paris. He has played with conductors including Pierre Boulez and Marin Alsop, and given recitals in Russia, the United States, France, Germany, Austria, Norway, Hungary, Italy, Sweden, Poland, Japan, and more. He is a regular participant in music festivals such as Crazy Days in Nantes, France, and in Japan; and La Rocque-d’Anthéron in France. Mr. Favorin enjoys premiering works by contemporary composers. His many recordings include Liszt and 20th-century Russian composers, but also new music and improvisations. He has been part of several groups devoted to freely improvised music, including his own ERROR 404.
RACHEL CHEUNG
Hong Kong | Age 25
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Semifinal Round Recital – Sunday, June 4, 2017 – 3:50 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
SCHUMANN Kreisleriana, op. 16
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 6 in A Major, op. 82
Rachel Cheung, who has been a Young Steinway Artist since 2011, has studied with Peter Frankl at the Yale School of Music and with Eleanor Wong at the Hong Kong Academy for the Performing Arts. She has won numerous prizes and awards, including fifth prize at the Leeds International Piano Competition, and was a semifinalist at the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition. Last year, she won a Carnegie Weill Hall debut recital as a special prize in the New York Concert Artists Worldwide Debut Audition—that debut will take place in March 2018. She has collaborated with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra under Edo de Waart, Sydney Symphony with Vladimir Ashkenazy, London Chamber Orchestra, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Beethoven Orchestra Bonn, and Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. She has performed recitals at the Auditorium du Louvre in Paris, London’s Steinway Hall, and the Richmond Hill Centre for Performing Arts in Toronto, among others. Ms. Cheung has twice been honored by the Hong Kong government for her contributions to culture and performed in the gala concert in Kiev celebrating the centenary of Vladimir Horowitz.
YEKWON SUNWOO
2017 CLIBURN GOLD MEDALIST
South Korea | Age 28
Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Semifinal Round Recital – Saturday, June 3, 2017 – 3:20 p.m.
Bass Performance Hall
Program:
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 30 in E Major, op. 109
STRAUSS-GRAINGER “Ramble on the Last Love-duet” from Richard Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 6 in A Major, op. 82
Yekwon Sunwoo earned his bachelor’s degree at the Curtis Institute of Music and his master’s at The Juilliard School, and also studied with Richard Goode at the Mannes School of Music. He currently studies under Bernd Goetzke in Hannover. Mr. Sunwoo won first prizes at the 2015 International German Piano Award in Frankfurt, the 2014 Vendome Prize held at the Verbier Festival, the 2013 Sendai International Music Competition, and the 2012 William Kapell International Piano Competition. He has performed with the Juilliard Orchestra under Itzhak Perlman at Avery Fisher Hall, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra under Marin Alsop, Houston Symphony Orchestra, National Orchestra of Belgium, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, and others. He has given recitals at Carnegie Hall, Hamarikyu Asahi Hall in Tokyo, Wigmore Hall in London, Radio France and Salle Cortot in Paris, and Kumho Art Hall in Seoul. Mr. Sunwoo has been featured on WQXR’s McGraw-Hill Young Artists Showcase, and has performed chamber music for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, with Ida Kavafian and Peter Wiley as part of Curtis On Tour, and with Roberto Diaz on the Bay Chamber Concerts.
JULIA KOCIUBAN
Poland | Age 25
Preliminary Round Recital – Thursday, May 25, 2017 – 2:30 p.m.
Program:
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 13 in E-flat Major, op. 27, no. 1 (“Quasi una fantasia”)
HAMELIN Toccata on “L’homme armé”
SZYMANOWSKI Etude in B-flat Minor, op. 4, no. 3
PROKOFIEV Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, op. 83
Born in Krakow, Julia Kociuban started her piano education at age 5 and graduated from the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw. She currently studies with Pavel Gililov at Universität Mozarteum Salzburg. In 2015, she was the first Polish semifinalist in the history of the International Tchaikovsky Competition, and in 2016 she won third prize at the International Mozart Competition in Salzburg. Ms. Kociuban has performed at venues in Europe (Hercules Hall in Munich, Konzerthaus in Vienna, and Laeiszhalle in Hamburg), North America, and Asia. She has collaborated with the NDR Symphony Orchestra and Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, among others, and worked with conductors including Hans Graf, Neeme Jarvi, and Kristjan Jarvi. In 2015, her debut solo album, Schumann, Chopin, Bacewicz, was released on the Polish classical label Dux. Her album Karneval der Tiere with the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra and Lahav Shani was released in 2016. Her other interests include art, books, movies, and cooking.