JURY
ANNA KRAVTCHENKO
Founder of the "W. A. Mozart" International Piano Competition and Professor at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana of Lugano, Switzerland
Anna Kravtchenko has distinguished herself on the international piano scene after winning unanimously the first prize at the prestigious "Ferruccio Busoni" International Piano Competition in 1992 at only 16 years old. Anna Kravtchenko after teaching for 15 years at the International Piano Academy “Incontri col Maestro” of Imola, since 2013 she is a Professor at the Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana, University of Lugano, Switzerland. Harold Schoenberg, one of the most autorithative musical critics and journalists of the New York Times, wrote about her: ”Her radiant sound and poetical interpretations could sometimes reduce audiences to tears“. Ms Kravtchenko has played in the most important halls and worldwide events such as the Berlin Philharmonie, the Great Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw for the "Meesterpianisten serie", at the Tonhalle in Zurich, at the "La Roque D'Antheron Festival", for the Brescia and Bergamo Festival, in the Sala Verdi of Milan for "Serate musicali", in the Herkulessaal in Munich, for the Ruhr Piano Festival, in the Salle Gaveau in Paris, Wigmore Hall in London, in the Victoria Hall Geneva, for the "Piano Aux Jacobins" Festival in Toulouse, for the Bergen Festival, ...
read more...
NORMA FISHER
Professor at the Royal College of Music of London, England
Norma Fisher is a legendary Professor of piano at the Royal College of Music in London and her reputation as a teacher is widely established and many of her prize-winning students are well known on the international concert circuit. Her success as a pianist in the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition as a top prize-winner followed, and in 1963, when she shared the much-coveted Piano Prize in the Harriet Cohen International Music Award with Vladimir Ashkenazy, her international reputation was sealed. The CDs of Norma's recently re-issued BBC recordings by Sonetto Classics, “Norma Fisher at the BBC Vol 1”, and “Norma Fisher at the BBC Vol 2” have been received with international acclaim, being awarded Editors and Critics Choice 2018 and 2019, by The Gramophone Magazine. She is known for her versatility as a performer, receiving international acclaim as one of Britains' leading pianists. This versatility extends to chamber music, which she plays with leading musicians throughout the world. Norma Fisher was born in London of Russian-Polish parents. Recognised as ‘a rare musical talent’, at the age of 11 she was awarded a Junior Exhibition to study with Sidney Harrison at the Guildhall School of Music. At 14 she was heard by the celebrated Greek pianist Gina Bachauer who became her mentor, introducing her to the distinguished Hungarian teacher Ilona Kabos, with whom she subsequently studied. A period was also spent in Paris studying French music with Jacques Fevrier.
read more...
CHRISTOPHER HINTERHUBER
Professor at the Universität für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Wien, Austria
Christopher Hinterhuber is one of the most acclaimed pianists of a younger generation in Austria. He is professor for piano at the MDW - Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien. Christopher Hinterhuber, born in Austria in 1973, rose to international acclaim through success in such prestigious competitions as J. S. Bach Competition in Saarbrücken, Pretoria Unisa International Piano Competition in South Africa, Géza Anda Competition in Zurich and the 11th International Beethoven Competition in Vienna. He appears regularly at the Ruhr Piano Festival, Mozartwoche Salzburg, Prague Autumn, amongst other festivals. Chamber music plays an important role in his repertoire, too. He is member of the Altenberg Trio Vienna, which plays its own cycle at Musikverein Wien. “One of the best and most fascinating piano recordings of the year“ wrote the german magazine Fono Forum in 2006 about his recording of Sonatas and Rondos by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach ...
read more...
PIETRO GATTO
Director and Professor of Cetara Master Piano Academy, Italy
Pietro Gatto is one of the most talented musician of his generation. He established his carrer in 2006 when he was 19 years old, after winning the XVI International piano competition of Cantù unanimously, prize that was not given to an Italian pianist since 15 years in the section "classica". Since then he performed in one of the most prestigious venues as “Sala Verdi” of Mailand with the Stuttgart Philarmoniker, for the prestigious Mormone Smeraldo series, St. Martin in the Fields in London, Teatro Verdi of Salerno with Salerno Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Marco Boni, in the great Hall of Tbilisi Conservatory of Georgia, Festival Mi.To., Auditorium Ciudad de Leon, Spain. He is the director and professor of the Cetara Master piano Academy, with the aim of promoting musical events, Festival, piano masterclasses ...
read more...
HAMSA AL-WADI JURIS
Professor at the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, Finland
Hamsa Al-Wadi Juris studied the piano at the Damascus Arab Conservatory of Music. Music diploma (MA) from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire 1982. Further studies at the Tchaikovsky Conservatoire 1982-83. MLic (artistic line) at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire 1985. Teacher Pavel Messner. Teacher of piano at the Central Finland Conservatoire 1985-87. Lecturer in piano music at the Sibelius Academy since 1987. Part-time teacher of the piano at the Espoo Music Institute 1988-1990. Solo, duo and orchestral soloist appearances in many parts of the Middle East, Europe, South America and the USA.
read more...
CARLES LAMA
Director of the KNS Classical, Spain
Steinway Artist Carles Lama was born and grew in Girona (Catalonia, Spain) and obtained the Superior Degree at the Liceu Conservatory, in Barcelona. He continued his musical training in Paris, at the Ecole Normale de Musique "Alfred Cortot" and in the United States, at the University of Harford, Connecticut. He has also worked with some of the most prestigious pianists, such as Alicia de Larrocha, Boris Berman, Murray Perahia or Claude Frank, among others. His international career as a pianist, has led him around Europe, America and Asia. He regularly performs in world capitals such as Paris, London, Madrid, Brussels, Rome, Barcelona, Milan, Prague, Belgrade, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Buenos Aires, Montevideo and others. He has played as soloist with many orchestras, among them: London City ...
read more...
HYO-SUN LIM
Professor at the KyungHee University of Seoul, Korea
Accomplished pianist Hyo-Sun Lim (Jeonju, Korea 1981), as a piano professor at KyungHee University, Seoul, Korea, piano trio member, and a soloist, has been studying piano since the age of three. She studied in the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia with Gary Graffman, getting the “Festorazzi-award” as most outstanding student of the year. Afterwards she moved to Europe to complete her musical education with Arie Vardi, Hannover Musikhochschule and Leonid Margarius, Accademia Pianistica di Imola (Italy). Upcoming and recent activities include performances at the Walt Disney Concert Hall LA, Konzerthaus Berlin, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Palais des Beaux-Arts Brussels, Lincoln Center New York, Auditori Barcelona, Palau de Musica Barcelona, Auditori de Madrid, and Opera City Hall Tokyo. She has also performed as soloist with Orchestre National de Belgique, Vlaams Radio Orkest, Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie, the Fort Collins Symphony Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Budapest Concert Orchestra Seoul Phil Orchestra, Busan Phil Orchestra, and the San Remo Symphony Orchestra. Hyo-Sun Lim has won top prizes at many international competitions: 5th prize at Queen Elisabeth Piano Competition, 1st prize, audience, and special prize winner at the Viotti Competition, special prize for late beethoven works at the Beethoven Competition ...
read more...
ALEXANDER MEINEL
Professor at the at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater „Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy“ Leipzig, Germany
Alexander Meinel teaches at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy“ Lepzig, Germany and since 2002 he's one of the chairs of the New Leipzig Chopin Society. Born in Halle (Saale), he gave his debut as pianist at the age of 17 at the Gewandhaus zu Leipzig. During his studies at the HMT “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” Leipzig with Herbert Sahling and Joel Shapiro and at the Juilliard School New York with Jerome Lowenthal, he won prizes in national and international competitions in Weimar and Bayreuth. He aroused audiences with the integral of the 32 piano sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven, which he performs in several german cities. During the 250th anniversary, he plays series of the complete piano sonatas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. His recordings of Beethovens Hammerklaviersonate and Schumanns Piano concerto have received an enthusiastic acclaim by famous critics ...
read more...
YUKO UENO
Professor at Showa University of Music, Japan
After graduating Toho Gakuen Music High School and being admitted to Toho Gakuen Music College, Yuko Ueno continued her musical studies at Fondazione Accademia Internazionale di Imola, Italy, where she finished with diploma, and then she acquired diplom superieur de concertiste de piano at l’Ecole Normale Alfred Cortot de Paris, where she was highly evaluated by Martha Argelich, Abdel-Rahman El-Bacha and Cyprien Katsaris. In 2009, she unanimously was granted diploma also in the Chamber Music faculty. Yuko Ueno is a prizewinner of many international piano competitions, such as Hamamatsu International Piano Academy Competition and International Johann Nepomuk Hummel Piano Competition in Bratislava, Slovakia. Since starting her career, she has been invited not only as a pianist, but also as a chamber music player to various renowned festivals and concert halls, such as Settimane Musicali a Stresa (Italy), Matinee at l’Associazione Mozart Italia, Salle Cortot Paris, Theatre Saint-Bonnet in Bourges, Tokyo Performing Art Festival, La Folle Journee Tokyo. She also has enjoyed performing with orchestras, including National Orchestra of the Republic of Moldova, Slovakia Philharmonic Orchestra, Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra. In addition, she has appeared in music programme on RAI3 (Italy), FM-RTVS (Slovakia), ...
read more...
AARON WAJNBERG
Chairman of the Piano Department and professor at the Royal Antwerp Conservatoire, Belgium
Belgian born pianist Aaron Wajnberg studied at the Antwerp Royal Flemish Conservatory of Music. In 2011, he made his Carnegie Hall debut and has performed worldwide as a soloist and a collaborative pianist ever since. At a very young age, Aaron Wajnberg became laureate of almost all national Belgian piano competitions. He was a prizewinner of the International EPTA competition and won first prize at the International American Protégé Piano Competition in New York. He performed at the Teatro Municipal Rio de Janeiro, Veronica Hagman Hall Danbury (Connecticut), Palau de les Arts Valencia, the Bayerische Staatsoper München, Tonhalle Düsseldorf, Clara Schumann Saal Frankfurt, Crystall Hall Rogaska Slatina, Mozarteum Salzburg, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Teatro Communale Bologna, Teatro Verdi Milano, ...
