For the past 25 years – it has been oddly silent on the Toronto piano competition front. In 1985, there was the Bach International Piano Competition, but it sputtered out despite plenty of local and national support. Notably the first prize winner, Angela Hewitt went on to enjoy an international career, and has become one of Canada’s best-known piano laureates.
Toronto has no shortage of international known pianists, and our schools attract students from all around the world. Yet, for piano competitions, nothing.
But if the ambitious Toronto International Piano Competition has their way, this is all about to change.
It all started in 2010, under the moniker, The Chinese Cultural Centre Toronto International Piano Competition. That year a 20-year-old pianist from China’s eastern Shandong province, Jiayan Sun, captured the top prize for the competition, thus finding its stride.
Four years later, they are back with a shorter name, bigger prizes, a more prestigious jury, and a slicker operation.
Although a career as a classical pianist is hard work, having exceptional talent and training are not always enough, says TIPC Artistic Director, Lang-Ning Liu. “One of the biggest challenges is finding the opportunity of being heard and appreciated.”
This is where the many international piano competitions come in. Competitions like the TIPC field hundreds of hopeful applicants each year, but only a handful are invited to participate. This year, they invited musicians of all nationalities to Toronto and flex their talents.
“TIPC strives to provide as much publicity as possible to give the best exposure to the 24 pianists. We have invited managers and conductors to various rounds to find pianists for possible collaborations,” says Liu.
Out of the 24 hopefuls, six hail from China. South Korea sends five. Canada will be represented by three: Younggun Kim, Dmitri Levkovich and Christopher Miranda, all from the Toronto area. Russia and Italy each have two, and the rest come from Algeria, Australia, Israel, Slovenia, Spain and the United States/Japan.
With total cash prizes at US$31,000, plus solo and orchestral engagements including appearances with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Concert Orchestra, the stakes are high.
The selected pianists will take part in two opening rounds, which start on October 25th and run for 4 days at the Chinese Cultural Centre’s P.C. Ho Theatre. From these, six will be chosen to compete in the Semi-Final round on October 30th. In the final round, three pianists will perform concertos with Maestro Kerry Stratton and the Toronto Concert Orchestra on Saturday, November 1st at Koerner Hall.
When asked about why they thought Toronto would be an ideal location to launch an International Piano Competition, Liu said it was about the magnitude of the city’s classical music community, as well as Toronto’s multicultural diversity.
“A prestigious competition can bring a lot to the city. It’s a celebration of music and culture not unlike the Cliburn, the Chopin, or the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competitions,” Liu says. “As far as repertoire, there will be three concertos in the final round. But for the first three rounds, the repertoire is open from all genres. Our purpose is to let pianists perform what presents them the best.”
Toronto has always been a city known for its pianists. Glenn Gould is hands down our biggest classical music export, and still attracts legions of fans to the city to sit next to his statue on Front St, next to CBC’s Glenn Gould Studio.
Ironically, Gould hated piano competitions. He described them as a “blood sport”; the opposite of art.
Liu defends the idea of a music competition, stating “There’s definitely a diverse number of opinions on music competitions. As a pianist myself, I have also participated in some international competitions. I have never viewed competitions in the sense of “competing”. For me, it’s performance opportunities that kept expanding my repertoire and abilities. I have received a good amount of performing experiences from playing in different concert venues by going through some of the international competitions. But of course, if one narrows their focus on results only, then the competition experience can be very discouraging to say the very least. After all, only a small percentage of pianists can receive prizes.”
The TIMC will provide a number of opportunities for competitors in the form of masterclasses, by Kum Sing Lee and Yoheved Kaplinsky. All 24 participants will also participate in a career development workshops designed to offer valuable insight and career guidance.
As far as the jury, Yoheved Kaplinsky of New York’s Juilliard School will chair the panel including: James Anagnoson and Kum Sing Lee (Canada), Fabio Bidini (Italy), John Giordano (USA), Jan Jiracek (Germany), and John O’Conor (Ireland). These are an experienced list, with ties to the Van Cliburn, Arthur Rubinstein, Chopin, Dublin, Tchaikovsky, Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, Rachmaninoff, and International Beethoven Piano Competitions.
The word is out yet on if the TIPC can become a competition mainstay, but there seems to be no shortage of brilliant, impeccably-equipped musicians looking to break into the lucrative international touring circuit. Let’s wish this years competitors luck, and the TIPC as well.
The competition runs from October 24 to November 1st and takes place at the P.C. Ho Theatre and Koerner Hall.
For more details on the TIPC, visit http://www.cccpianocompetitions.org/international2014/
For tickets see here.
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First Prize
$15,000 USD cash prize
Concert engagements in 2015:
Concerto performance with Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Concerto performance with Toronto Concert Orchestra
Second Prize
$8,000 USD cash prize
Third Prize
$5,000 USD cash prize
4th, 5th and 6th Place
$1,000 USD cash prize each
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