Leeds International Piano Competition

[melvyn]

"The Leeds" is taking place again this year (every 3 years) and stage 1 started on Wednesday.

The performances so far can be heard on the University web site:

http://www.leeds.ac.uk/music/pianocompetition/

It looks like most of the competitors have chosen to play works by Beethoven, especially on the Thursday; so it's a Beethoven feast! It's a chance to hear some fine unpublished performances. I liked the choice of "Rage Over A Lost Penny" by David Kadouch.

The 6 final concertos will be broadcast on BBC4 in about 2 weeks time.

[Bux]

Thanks a lot melvyn!

But where do I find the programme for the competition... ?

[melvyn]

I don't think there is a programme as such, because the competitors choose their own pieces. It's not like a public recital with an advertised programme.

But if you press the "Listen" buttons, you can quickly skip through to any point in the music to see if there's anything worth listening to! They have to play one major work and one shorter one.

You can get lots more information from the official web site:

Leeds International Piano Competition

You might even find a programme somewhere on there (although I didn't!).

[melvyn]

Here are 18 Beethoven pieces I've identified from just the first 3 days of the competition (there may be more):

WEDNESDAY
Jae-Won Chung - Op101
Vestard Shimkus - Op110
Benjamin Moser - Op111

THURSDAY
David Kadouch (15:48) - Op129
Ji-Hwan Hong - 32 Vars. WoO80
Pallavi Mahidhara (4:30) - Waldstein Op53
Alina Bercu - Op109
Alexej Gorlatch - Op101
Riyad Nicolas - Op27 No.1
Rina Sudo - Op10 No.2

FRIDAY
Sara Daneshpour - Op2 No.3
Stephanie Proot - Op27 No.1
Matthew Kam (14:15) - Les Adieux Op81a
Julian Jia - Op31 No.3
Sam Armstrong (5:00) - Op111
Alexander Schimpf (7:11) - Op101
Ryoma Takagi (7:05) - Appassionata Op.57
Tamas Erdi (4:55) - Op31 No.2

Listen here

[Bux]

Wow, melvyn, a thousand thanks for your trouble!

Rather unusual indeed with more (?) Beethoven than the usual bread-and-butter of pianists: Chopin and Liszt and Liszt and Chopin, again and again.

Have you spotted any candidates for the first prize as yet?

[melvyn]

Have you spotted any candidates for the first prize as yet?

Yes, I have spotted 68 of them!

[hatless]

I've been listening to the Leeds and found this website while searching for discussion about it.

There are so many contestants that it's difficult to judge them, but Ji-Hwan Hong was very impressive. I've still got more than half to listen to, though

I hope to go to one of the Second Round sessions next week.

[melvyn]

I love the piece that Ji-Hwan Hong played after the Beethoven Variations, starting at 15:56. Do you (or anybody else) know the name of it.

I know it's by Chopin, and it's not a waltz, so I assume it must be one of his Ballades or Nocturnes.

[hatless]

Yes, it's Nocturne No 13 in C minor. And he played it quite ravishingly. I just listened again. I think he is seriously good!

[Euan Mackinnon]

According to http://www.pianofortephilia.blogspot.com/ for Friday, June 12th:

The United Kingdom (and Ireland) has sent the grand total of 1 pianist – Sam Armstrong.

who, thanks to melvyn, I see played Opus 111 on Friday. As this is one of my favourite Beethoven sonatas, I listened to his performance as well as that Benjamin Moser playing the same work on the previous Wednesday.

I am no musician but I found Armstrong's interpretation (of the first movement in particular) somewhat different from the run-of-the-mill performances of the piece and preferred it to Moser's though neither inspired me completely. I should welcome the views of others far better qualified than I am who have listened to these two interpretations.

Euan Mackinnon

[melvyn]

Yes, it's Nocturne No 13 in C minor. And he played it quite ravishingly. I just listened again. I think he is seriously good!

Yes, thank you for that information. I haven't heard that piece for a long time.

I am afraid I would make a very bad judge, because I tend to vote for the pieces which I like the best! Though I did think that Riyad Nicolas played the ending of Op27 No.1 impossibly fast.

[Nycanonymous]

More on Leeds

I thought Armstrong's performance of op. 111 was cold and disappointing, particularly in the Arietta. He got most of the rhythms wrong and the dynamics were uniformly too loud. I thought Moser was a little better, but far, far from great.

I was very impressed with Matei Varga's performance. Yes, I realize he did not play any LvB, but his performance of the Italian Concerto was very confident. He played with such soaring, unaffected lyricism in the second movement, while the third movement really sprang to life. I also thought his Schubert was very moving. As for Scheherezade, that is the best performance I've ever heard. Powerful stuff.

[hatless]

I enjoyed Pallavi Mahidhara's Waldstein. Full of character and energy, I thought. She kept the sonata moving onwards, and found an atmosphere of mystery in the last movement.

[hatless]

Ji Hwan Hong didn't make it to the second round. The names of 33 who did are now up. Including a 14 year old! Pallavi Mahidhara is through.