The Well-Tempered Ear
Meet Kevin Chen, who just won the 17th Arthur Rubinstein Piano Competition
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition is one of the most prestigious keyboard competitions in the world.
It ranks right up there with the Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Leeds and Van Cliburn competitions.
It takes place every three years in Tel Aviv, Israel. And this year, it started on March 14 and wrapped up just a week ago, on April 1.
This was the 17th Rubinstein Competition.
And it was won by an 18-year-old Chinese-Canadian pianist from Calgary.
He is Kevin Chen (below). He also composes and seems well on his way to a major career, especially since last year he also won the Geneva piano competition and was the youngest winner ever of the Franz Liszt Piano Competition in Budapest.
Winning the Rubinstein has launched many major career from Emanuel Ax, the first winner in 1974, to Daniil Trifnov in 2011.
At the bottom is a YouTube video with a recital by Chen along with a recital by the Georgian pianist who placed second: Giorgi Gigashvili. Chen’s performance of Chopin’s 12 Etudes, Op. 10, for example, begins at 2 hours, 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
You can also find a YouTube video of Chen’s prize-winning performance of Mozart’s last piano concerto, No. 27 in B-flat major, K. 595; and a wonderful recital from the Geneva competition. And more solo videos from the Rubinstein are sure to be posted soon.
Here is a fine story, with lots of personal details, from Chen’s hometown newspaper:
https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/kevin-chen-piano-arthur-rubinstein-competition
Here is a story about all the winners:
Israel’s Rubinstein Piano Competition Announces 2023 Winners
And for much more background about the competition’s history, the jury members for this year’s contestants, the past winners, repertoire requirements, mandatory stages, rules and so forth, go to:
https://arims.org.il/competition-2023-homepage/jury-2023/
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Classical music: Cellist Parry Karp plays music by Beethoven, Franck and Sulkan Tsintsadze in a FREE recital this Friday night
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By Jacob Stockinger
Cellist Parry Karp (below) will perform a FREE recital this Friday night, Feb. 24, at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall.
Karp, who is the longtime cellist of the Pro Arte Quartet, heads the chamber music program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music.
Karp will be joined by pianist Eli Kalman (below right with Karp), a longtime partner who did his graduate work at the UW-Madison and now teaches at the UW–Oshkosh.
Their program features two well-known works.
Karp will perform his own transcription of the Sonata in A minor for Violin and Piano (1801) by Ludwig van Beethoven. It is the eighth of the 10 violin sonatas by Beethoven that Karp has transcribed, keeping the violin works in their original key on the cello.
The duo will also play the famous Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano (1886) by Cesar Franck. It was transcribed by Jules Delsart with some adjustments from Karp.
Then comes a rarity: the 24 Preludes for Cello and Piano (1980) by Sulkhan Tsintsadze (1925-1991, below).
Here are some remarks about these works by Karp, who likes to explore neglected composers and repertoire:
“The 24 Preludes (1980) by Sulkhan Tsintsadze are a wonderful find. Tsintsadze was a composer and cellist from Georgia in the USSR, and was very taken by the 24 prelude format.
“The piece goes through all of the major and minor Keys in the same order as the do the preludes for solo piano by Chopin.”
“Each Prelude is similar to a short story or vignette, and the emotional range of the entire set is compelling.”
Here is more information about the composer:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulkhan_Tsintsadze
And here is a YouTube video – the first of four parts – with samples of the 24 Preludes for Cello and Piano:
Tags: Arts, Beethoven, Cello, Chamber music, Classical music, emotion, Franck, Jacob Stockinger, Jules Delsart, key, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, major, minor, Music, Parry Karp, Prelude, Pro Arte Quartet, Republic of Georgia, short story, Sonata, Soviet Union, Sulkhan Tsintsadze, transcription, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, USSR, UW-Oshkosh, vignette, Violin, Wisconsin, YouTube
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