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Join us in Sundance Square Plaza for the two-night Competition Grand Finale, completely free to attend.

Join us in Sundance Square Plaza for the two-night Competition Grand Finale, completely free to attend.

2025 Cliburn Competitor Pedro López Salas

Shields-Collins “Buddy” Bray has been artistic consultant for the Cliburn since 2003. For the last 20 years he has shown his longstanding commitment to new music, hosting concerts spotlighting living American composers such as William Bolcom, John Corigliano, Ricky Ian Gordon, Jennifer Higdon, Jake Heggie, Kevin Puts, Ned Rorem, and Ben Moore. With music educator John Feierabend, Buddy created the Cliburn in the Classroom curriculum for second-, third-, and fourth-graders; now, after almost two decades of serving as writer, narrator, host, and sometimes-pianist at these uniquely interactive programs, he continues to be heavily involved in an advisory role.

Adopt-A-Competitor returns to local libraries this year, inviting you to see two of the 2025 competitors—Jonathan Mamora and Federico Gad Crema—perform 20 minutes each ahead of the upcoming 2025 Cliburn Competition. Bring your friends and family for this fun culturally inspired program.

Taiwanese pianist Cecilia Lo-Chien Kao is a dynamic performer who is in demand as a chamber musician. She has collaborated with several internationally known artists such as Lynn Harrell and Robert McDuffie, and members of the Tokyo, Emerson, and Juilliard String Quartets, among many others. She has performed at Carnegie Weill Hall and can be heard with cellist Bion Tsang on his album The Blue Rock Sessions.

Take a musical journey through the solar system! As spectacular images of space wow us on the brand-new Omni Theater screen—the most advanced LED display of its kind—a narrator will lead us on our spectacular voyage. The stars and planets will swirl above as a piano, violin, and cello perform music that explores and celebrates the wonder of space.

Performing in the Semifinal and Final Rounds, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra under Music Director Robert Spano is deeply committed to uniting its community through performance, education, and outreach, reaching an audience of more than 200,000 annually.

2025 Competition Artistic Collaborators

2022 Competition Artistic Collaborators