26.07.2023
Pianists are welcome to apply for participation at Jāzeps Vītols 8th International Piano Competition
Pianists are welcome to apply by August 20 for participation at Jāzeps Vītols 8th International Piano Competition, which will be held in two solo rounds at the Great Hall of Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music (JVLMA) and the final round together with the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra at the Liepaja Concert Hall “Great Amber” already in October this year.
This is a great opportunity for young pianists. Several winners of previous competitions have already become recognized artists in Latvia and abroad.
Pianists, who are no older than 30 years of age on the Competition opening day are eligible for participation in the Competition (born after October 7, 1993).
The Competition will have an international jury this year as well. It will include both Latvian representatives – Toms Ostrovskis, Juris Žvikovs and also such international heavyweights as Ivari Ilja, Zbignevas Ibelhauptas and Niklas Pokki.
The jury will work intensively in two cities this year, as after the selection rounds in Riga, the final performances will take place in the Liepaja Concert Hall "Great Amber". Perhaps the pianists of the world know Liepaja better than Riga, considering the excellent, even unique tradition of the Liepaja International Stars Festival which has been held since 1993, the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra has played with the world's greatest piano masters year by year, collaborating with more than 200 pianists in total.
Jāzeps Vītols Competition has become a tradition tracing back as far as 1989 and has had such patrons as the former Latvian Minister of Culture Raimonds Pauls (1993), the First Lady of Latvia Lilita Zatlere (2008), while the jury has included such prominent piano masters as Lazar Berman (Russia/Italy) and Stanislav Igolinsky. The Competition of 2023 will also gather outstanding new talents on the stage and experienced grands of the world of art at the jury tables.
Organization and support of the Competition is provided by the JVLMA, the oldest symphony orchestra in the Baltic States - the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra, the Concert Hall “Great Amber” as well as the Ministry of Culture.
