Busoni International Piano Competition: Solo Finalists 2017
These recordings are exclusively on IDAGIO! After 2 editions without a 1st Prize, the 60th anniversary edition in 2015 ended with the Busoni prize being awarded to the young South Korean Chloe Mun.
Read more…Among the world's music competitions, there are few that can boast a history as long and formidable as that of the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition. Founded in 1949, it immediately captured the attention of the contemporary music scene, due in part to the presence of an extraordinary Honorary Committee, which included Claudio Arrau, Wilhelm Backhaus, Alfred Cortot, Walther Gieseking, Dinu Lipatti, Arthur Rubinstein and Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli. For almost seven decades, the competition has again and again confirmed its reputation of being a catalyst in bringing to light many musicians who have subsequently shone in the pianistic firmament, such as Alfred Brendel, Martha Argerich, Jörg Demus, Louis Lortie, Lilya Zilberstein and Garrick Ohlsson.
This year's final rounds will take place between 22 August and 1 September. The final stages start with two solo rounds, that leave the candidates great freedom of choice in terms of repertoire with only very few mandatory pieces, such as a work by Busoni, a Bach/Busoni transcription and certain contemporary works that this year are selected by the Orléans Concours International. For the first time, chamber music will be part of the final stages: The musicians remaining after the solo semi-finals and solo finals will perform with the Quartetto di Cremona, allowing the young musicians to exhibit yet another aspect of their artistic range. The three finalists who remain in the competition until the very end will perform with the Orchestra Haydn. As in previous years, the emphasis for this final stage will lie on works from the great Romantic repertoire. Since over the long history of the Busoni Competition, on many occasions the jury ended up not awarding a first prize, expectations will be high.