International Chopin Piano Competition
International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition | |
---|---|
Current: XVIII International Chopin Piano Competition | |
Venue | National Philharmonic, Warsaw |
Presented by | Fryderyk Chopin Institute |
First awarded | 1927 |
Website | konkursy |
The International Chopin Piano Competition (Polish: Międzynarodowy Konkurs Pianistyczny im. Fryderyka Chopina), often referred to as the Chopin Competition, is a piano competition held in Warsaw, Poland. It was initiated in 1927 and has been held every five years since 1955. It is one of the few competitions devoted entirely to the works of a single composer,[1] in this case, Frédéric Chopin. The competition is currently organized by the Fryderyk Chopin Institute.[2]
The Chopin Competition is one of the most prestigious competitions in classical music, often launching the careers of its winners overnight through major concert dates and lucrative recording contracts. Past winners have included Maurizio Pollini (1960), Martha Argerich (1965) and Krystian Zimerman (1975). The most recent winner has been Seong-Jin Cho of South Korea in 2015.[3]
The 18th International Chopin Piano Competition, scheduled for 2–23 October 2020, was postponed to the same dates in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]
History[]
The competition was initiated by Polish pianist and pedagogue Jerzy Żurawlew, who began seeking funds for a piano competition in 1925, influenced by Aleksander Michałowski. Żurawlew recalled later: "I met with utter incomprehension, indifference and even aversion. The opinion among musicians was unanimous: Chopin is so great that he can defend himself. At the Ministry, it was announced that there were no funds for it [...] and that the whole idea was unfeasible". Only the election of new Polish president Ignacy Mościcki, who became patron of the competition, made the competition possible.[5]
Subsequent editions were organized in 1932 and 1937; the post-war fourth and fifth editions were held in 1949 and 1955. In 1957 the competition became one of the founding members of the World Federation of International Music Competitions in Geneva.
In 2018, the Chopin Institute organized the inaugural I International Chopin Competition on Period Instruments.
Jury[]
The jury has been chaired by:
- Witold Maliszewski (1927)[6]
- 1932 and 1937)[7] (
- Zbigniew Drzewiecki (1949, 1955, 1960, 1965)[8]
- Kazimierz Sikorski (1970 and 1975)[9]
- Kazimierz Kord (1980)[10]
- Jan Ekier (1985, 1990, 1995)[11]
- Andrzej Jasiński (2000, 2005, 2010)[12]
- Katarzyna Popowa-Zydroń (2015, 2021)[13]
Prize winners[]
The laureates of the Chopin International Piano Competition:[14][15]
Edition | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
---|---|---|---|
I (1927) | Lev Oborin Soviet Union |
Stanisław Szpinalski Poland |
Róża Etkin Poland |
II (1932) | Alexander Uninsky (c) Soviet Union |
Imre Ungár (c) Hungary |
Bolesław Kon Poland |
III (1937) | Yakov Zak Soviet Union |
Rosa Tamarkina Soviet Union |
Witold Małcużyński Poland |
IV (1949) | Bella Davidovich Soviet Union |
Barbara Hesse-Bukowska Poland |
Waldemar Maciszewski Poland |
Halina Czerny-Stefańska Poland (tie) | |||
V (1955) | Adam Harasiewicz Poland |
Vladimir Ashkenazy Soviet Union |
Fou Ts'ong China |
VI (1960) | Maurizio Pollini Italy |
Irina Zaritskaya Soviet Union |
Iran |
VII (1965) | Martha Argerich Argentina |
Arthur Moreira Lima Brazil |
Marta Sosińska Poland |
VIII (1970) | Garrick Ohlsson United States |
Mitsuko Uchida Japan |
Piotr Paleczny Poland |
IX (1975) | Krystian Zimerman Poland |
Dina Joffe Soviet Union |
Soviet Union |
X (1980) | Dang Thai Son Vietnam |
Tatyana Shebanova Soviet Union |
Arutyun Papazyan Soviet Union |
XI (1985) | Stanislav Bunin Soviet Union |
France |
Poland |
XII (1990) | Not awarded | Kevin Kenner United States |
Japan |
XIII (1995) | Not awarded | Philippe Giusiano France |
Gabriela Montero United States |
Alexei Sultanov Uzbekistan (tie) | |||
XIV (2000) | Yundi Li China |
Ingrid Fliter Argentina |
Alexander Kobrin Russia |
XV (2005) | Rafał Blechacz Poland |
Not awarded | Dong-Hyek Lim South Korea |
Dong-Min Lim South Korea (tie) | |||
XVI (2010) | Yulianna Avdeeva Russia |
Lukas Geniušas Russia Lithuania |
Daniil Trifonov Russia |
Ingolf Wunder Austria (tie) | |||
XVII (2015) | Seong-Jin Cho South Korea |
Charles Richard-Hamelin Canada |
Kate Liu United States |
XVIII (2021) | To be determined |
Traditional special awards at the competition include the Polish Radio prize for the best mazurka performance (since 1927), the Fryderyk Chopin Society in Warsaw prize for the best polonaise (since 1960), and the National Philharmonic prize for the best performance of a piano concerto (since 1980).
Medal table[]
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Soviet Union | 5 | 6 | 2 | 13 |
2 | Poland | 4 | 2 | 7 | 13 |
3 | Russia | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
United States | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |
5 | Argentina | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
6 | South Korea | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
7 | China | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
8 | Italy | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Vietnam | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
10 | France | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
11 | Japan | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
12 | Austria | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Brazil | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Canada | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Hungary | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Lithuania | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Uzbekistan | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
18 | Iran | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Totals (18 nations) | 16 | 20 | 18 | 54 |
Note: Medals were only awarded after 1975. In this table, winner of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Prize prior to 1975 are included as having won Gold, Silver, and Bronze respectively.
In popular culture[]
The Chopin Competition is a major plot device in the Japanese manga series Forest of Piano, serialized from 1998 to 2015 and adapted as an anime from 2018 to 2019. It follows the story of pianist Kai Ichinose, who ultimately wins the Chopin Competition.[16] Creator Makoto Isshiki was inspired to write the series when she watched a documentary showing Stanislav Bunin winning the XI International Chopin Piano Competition.[17]
See also[]
References[]
- ^ "Culture.pl". Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
- ^ Website Archived 3 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine of the International Chopin Competition, accessed 7 August 2014.
- ^ Chin, Simon (14 July 2017). "Winning a renowned piano competition put Seong-Jin Cho on road to stardom". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
- ^ "XVIII Chopin Competition". chopin2020.pl. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "I International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition". Fryderyk Chopin Institute. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
- ^ "1ST INTERNATIONAL FRYDERYK CHOPIN PIANO COMPETITION". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "2ND INTERNATIONAL FRYDERYK CHOPIN PIANO COMPETITION". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "4TH INTERNATIONAL FRYDERYK CHOPIN PIANO COMPETITION". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "8TH INTERNATIONAL FRYDERYK CHOPIN PIANO COMPETITION". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "10TH INTERNATIONAL FRYDERYK CHOPIN PIANO COMPETITION". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "11TH INTERNATIONAL FRYDERYK CHOPIN PIANO COMPETITION". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "Konkurs Chopinowski. Nie myj rąk w śniegu!". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "Jurors". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "Past Prize Winners". Retrieved 10 October 2020.
- ^ "Międzynarodowy Konkurs Pianistyczny im. Fryderyka Chopina". Retrieved 10 October 2020.
- ^ Takahashi, Hara (Autumn 2019). "The Quest for Selfhood in Manga and the Spirituality of Contemporary Japanese" (PDF). Dharma World. 46: 7–9.
- ^ "2008 Japan Media Arts Festival Manga Division Grand Prize PIANO NO MORI". Japan Media Arts Festival. Archived from the original on 12 February 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
Further reading[]
- Ekiert, Janusz (2010). The Endless Search for Chopin: The History of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (1st ed.). Warsaw: Muza. ISBN 978-83-7495-812-7.
- Arendt, Ada; Bogucki, Marcin; Majewski, Paweł; Sobczak, Kornelia (2020). Chopinowskie igrzysko. Historia Międzynarodowego Konkursu Pianistycznego im. Fryderyka Chopina 1927–2015 [The Chopin Games. The History of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition 1927–2015] (in Polish) (1st ed.). Warsaw: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego. ISBN 978-83-235-4127-1.
- Ossowski, Jerzy; Brodska, Halina (2010). The International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in photographs. Warsaw: Fryderyk Chopin Institute. ISBN 978-83-61142-36-2.
External links[]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to International Chopin Piano Competition. |
- International Chopin Piano Competition
- Music competitions in Poland
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- Polish awards
- Recurring events established in 1927
- 1927 establishments in Poland
- Monuments and memorials to Frédéric Chopin