This year the chosen instrument of the prestigeous competition is the violin.Continue reading
After the first six-year cycle, the 2023 Bartók World Competition is turning over a new leaf. As last year’s composition round concluded the competition’s first series, this year, as in 2017, the organizers could once again look forward to young violinists, writes Magyar Nemzet.
As is the tradition of the Liszt Academy’s competitions, the youngest entrant, who turned out to be 15-year-old Gáspár Kelemen, was the first to be drawn on Saturday. The others will follow in alphabetical order, and this order will remain valid throughout the competition.
The world competition, with a total budget of €46,000, is open to 31 young talents from 16 countries.
The prizes will be awarded at a gala ceremony on September 10.
The competitors include seven from Japan, three each from Hungary and Russia, two from Korea, the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, and China, and one each from the UK, Romania, Turkey, Sweden, Germany, Moldova, France, and the US.
Photo via Facebook/Bartokworldcompetition
The competition will be open to the public, with the semi-finals free of charge, and tickets for the finals and the gala awards concert available at a reduced price on the Liszt Academy’s website and ticket offices.
In her opening speech, Andrea Vigh, Rector of the Liszt Academy of Music, said: “As one of the world’s leading music universities, our most important mission is to develop talent, and as Bartók’s alma mater, to nurture his legacy.” She noted that the international competition, taking place in six-year cycles, consists of interlinked competitions, with instrumentalists and composers alternating.
American violinist Daniel Phillips, president of the international jury and professor at The Juilliard School, a private performing arts conservatory in New York City, said in his speech that
Hungary has given the world many excellent musicians. It is a pleasure and an honor to be at the Liszt Academy, the center of Hungarian music.
Béla Bartók (1881 – 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century. Photo via Wikipedia
The first prize is €22,000, the second €14,000, the third €8,000, and €2,000 for the best performance of a contemporary piece. Special prizes, including performance opportunities, may also be awarded by the jury, thanks to donations from collaborating partners.
The competition, based on a six-year cycle, is built around the most distinctive aspects of Bartók’s oeuvre – piano, violin, and chamber music, as well as composition. Each instrumental competition is held every two years in the main hall of the Liszt Academy, with a composition competition in the intervening years, always linked to the next instrumental category. The first cycle of competitions started in 2017 with a violin competition, followed by a piano competition the following year.
Via Magyar Nemzet, Featured image via Facebook/Zeneakadémia