{"id":45142,"date":"2017-05-09T14:26:25","date_gmt":"2017-05-09T18:26:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=45142"},"modified":"2017-05-09T16:07:38","modified_gmt":"2017-05-09T20:07:38","slug":"the-scoop-2017-eckhart-gramatte-music-competition-crowns-winners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2017\/05\/09\/the-scoop-2017-eckhart-gramatte-music-competition-crowns-winners\/","title":{"rendered":"THE SCOOP | 2017 Eckhardt-Gramatt\u00e9 Music Competition Crowns Winners"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Soprano
Soprano Alexandra Smither (Photo: Emily Ding)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Eckhardt-Gramatt\u00e9 National Music Competition has announced soprano Alexandra Smither as the winner of this year\u2019s voice edition. She and her collaborative pianist Pierre-Andr\u00e9 Doucet will receive a comprehensive prize package, including the $10,000 first place award, a residency, and recital at the Casalmaggiore International Festival in Italy this July, and a cross-Canada concert tour in the fall. The duo also collected the $1,000 prize for best performance of the new Canadian work commissioned for the Competition, which advocates for the creation and performance of Canadian and contemporary music.<\/p>\n

Both winners affirm the Competition\u2019s importance in the Canadian classical music landscape. For Smither, \u201cthe E-Gr\u00e9 Competition has always represented to me the commitment, pride, and dedication in the Canadian musical community to promote contemporary and home-grown music at the highest level [\u2026] I think we as Canadians should be very proud of the art that is being made in this country and do all we can to make sure it is given the platform it deserves! We are so excited and grateful to be given this opportunity.\u201d\u00a0Doucet\u2019s experience in the competition was one of immense musical growth: \u201cPreparing for the Eckhardt-Gramatt\u00e9 Competition pushes you to your limits. It’s a process that allows you to explore and bring meaning to music that is oftentimes very complex and layered, but which also reflects our life and times.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Pianist
Pianist Pierre-Andr\u00e9 Doucet (Photo: Elaine Fancy Photography)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Second prize and $4,000 went to soprano Maeve Palmer and pianist Joy Lee. The $2,000 third prize was awarded to soprano Lisa Mulgrew and pianist Jesse Plessis. The other participants received $1,000 each: Adanya Dunn, soprano (Cheryl Duvall, piano); Kristin Hoff, mezzo-soprano (Antoine Joubert, piano); and Virginie Mongeau, soprano (Anna Huettel, piano).<\/p>\n

As collaborative pianists gain increasing recognition for their supportive role alongside the soloists they accompany, this year\u2019s E-Gr\u00e9 Competition also fostered an atmosphere that recognized both performers in equal measure: winner announcements included both musical partners, and the public offered compliments to singers as well as their pianists during the live competition webcasts. On stage, there were numerous moments of deep connection between each pair of musicians, including between Smither and Doucet: \u201cTo be onstage with someone who you implicitly trust allows you to take risks and really put yourself out there. I know that if I stumble, [Doucet] will be there to catch me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The E-Gr\u00e9 Competition has served as a stepping stone for the launch of many Canadians\u2019 musical careers, including those of Jon Kimura Parker, Jamie Parker, Ben Heppner, Louise Bessette, and James Ehnes. Categories alternate yearly between voice, piano, and strings.<\/p>\n

For more CLASSICAL MUSIC NEWS, visit\u00a0HERE<\/u><\/a><\/span>.<\/h3>\n

#LUDWIGVAN<\/i><\/b><\/h3>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Eckhardt-Gramatt\u00e9 National Music Competition has announced soprano Alexandra Smither as the winner of this year\u2019s voice edition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":45145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[6439,5,39],"tags":[9553,9552,9554],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/05\/Smither.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-bK6","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45142"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45142"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45142\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45151,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45142\/revisions\/45151"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45145"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45142"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=45142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}