Chopin Piano Competition: Guide to Poland’s best known competition.
Highlights
- Considered one of the four biggest piano competitions in the world, and the oldest among them.
- First piano competition was held in 1927. Held in Warsaw every 5 years
- Has produced superstar pianists such as Marta Argerich, Krystian Zimerman and Maurizio Pollini.
- Month-long celebration of Poland’s best-known composer.
The Piano Competition engages its locals stronger than any other classical music related event, with almost everyone getting emotionally engaged and supporting their favourites.
History
After world war I, the cult of Chopin lost its momentum. He was regarded not modern enough and his music too subtle. To put chopin back on his pedestal, to professors at the Warsaw conservatory decided to start the International Fryderyk Chopin piano competition. The first edition was held in January 1927.
The second edition in 1932 was much bigger, and the jury, for the first time, was composed of renowned, international artistes.
The competition could not be held in 1942 due to world War II, Warsaw was occupied by Nazi Germany, the tradition resumed in 1949.
Past Winners / Superstars
1960 competition was won by Italian prodigy Maurizio Pollini. From there started his path to becoming a Gramophone Hall of famer in 2012, a presitgious life time achievemnt any classical musician can get.
The 1965 is remembered as the great competition. It was eventually won by Marta Argerich from Argentina, who won by a small margin nudging out the amazing Arthur Moreira Lima from Brazil and Marta Sosnicka from Poland (who was pregnant). In the years to come, Marta Argerich became a star of classical music, proving the jury right.
1975 saw the birth of one of the greatest stars of the 20th century, Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman, who won the Grand Prix and the special prizes.
In 2005, Rafal Blechacz took the competition by storm. He walked away with the first prize and every special prize. The jury felt he was so outstanding they didn’t name a runner-up.
Rising South Korean star says winning the International Chopin Piano Competition put him on the road to stardom
Rising South Korean star Seong-Jin Cho says that winning the legendary International Chopin Piano Competition put him on the road to stardom.
“I was really happy, because I wouldn’t have to play in any more competitions,” Cho recalls.
Nothing captures the ambivalence many musicians feel toward piano competitions — those high-stakes Olympics of the musical world — better than the reaction of the rising South Korean star Seong-Jin Cho, to winning the legendary International Chopin Piano Competition in 2015.
Cho, then 21, showed a rare combination of technical skills, artistic maturity and freshness of insight to win the competition at Warsaw.
With the gold medal, Cho knew his immediate future was set — he secured major concert dates and a recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon, his victory opened the doors to Carnegie Hall, it brought him his Washington-area debut, and he didn’t have to perform in piano competitions any longer.
Cho is already making headlines with his bulletproof technique, his artistic voice: his sense of drama, his natural nobility and his youthfully searching interpretations.
“Don’t let the competition medal fool you. This guy’s an artist,” says Critic Joshua Kosman.
Watch: Seong-Jin Cho – Piano Concerto in E minor Op. 11
Meanwhile, Cho has gained several allies, including the influential Russian conductor Valery Gergiev. Last year, Gergiev introduced Cho to incoming NSO Music Director Gianandrea Noseda, who would later conduct the London Symphony Orchestra on Cho’s beautiful and nuanced studio recording of Chopin’s First Piano Concerto.
Likes performing live than in the recording studio.
“It’s very difficult in the studio, because I have less adrenaline, so there’s less excitement. I play a little bit slower,” says Cho.
Cho, the first Korean winner of the reputed Chopin competition, became an overnight sensation in South Korea. His debut album rocketed to the top of Korea’s Gaon Chart (equivalent of the Billboard Hot 100) — for a week in 2015, and saw an unprecedented boom in interest in classical music in Korea after Cho’s victory.
Read: Chung plans a ONE KOREA orchestra
Watch: Seong-Jin Cho Interview
Born in 1994 in Seoul, Korea, Cho began serious studies at age 10 and gave his first public recital at 12. As a teenager, he rode the international junior competition circuit, making a precocious third-place showing at the 2011 Tchaikovsky competition at 17. In 2012, he left Korea for the Paris Conservatory, and he once again took third prize at a major competition — this time, the Rubinstein in 2014 — before his breakthrough in Warsaw.
Source: Washingtonpost
KeytarHQ editorial team includes musicians who write and review products for pianists, keyboardists, guitarists & other musicians. KeytarHQ is the best online resource for information on keyboards, pianos, synths, keytars, guitars and music gear for musicians of all abilities, ages and interests.
Leave a Reply