Anna Martirosian

  Eileen Hanyu Zhang

  Emma Lu

  Wanqi Huang

  Patrizia Amane Di Lella

  Riccardo Santoleri

Hiram Gabriel Reategui Lopez
Qingxin Wei
Isabella Kirillova

  Jarmin Weng

  Wu Wei

  Yipeng Xu

Martin Cvetkov
Daniel Guo

Pianist | Founder & Artistic Director of Gothenburg Piano Festival

Eligibility

A) 6 – 9 years old

B) 10 – 14 years old

C) 15 – 17 years old

*Age limits as 8th May 2023

Application

• A complete application form consists of: 

1)    Application Form

2)    Full Name

3)    Video Link

4)    Programme 

5)    Proof of ID

6)    Publicity Photo

7)    Short Biography 

8)    Application Fee

9)    Contact Details 

• The entry video should demonstrate the range and scope of your artistry through a variety of repertoire from J S Bach to 21st Century (YouTube, Vimeo or Google Drive).

• The length of the entry video:

Junior Category A – 10 minutes

Junior Category B – 15 minutes

Junior Category C – 20 minutes

• The video must be unedited, but it does not have to be from a concert performance.

• The video(s) must have been filmed no earlier than 31^st August 2022.

• A movement of a sonata or suite is allowed, but Concerti and Chamber Music are not accepted in this competition.

• The entry video is allowed to be made by multiple performance videos.

• The works must be published.

• Incomplete or late entries will not be accepted.

• The application fee is non-refundable. 

JURY

Aisa Ijiri 

Pianist | Steinway Artist | Founder & Artistic Director of Montecatini International Piano Competition, Piano Forte Firenze and Tokyo International Piano Association 

Chris Craker

CEO of Karma Sound Studios | Former Vice President of Sony Music Entertainment

Helena Ha-Young Sul

Pianist | Founder & Artistic Director of Gothenburg Piano Festival

Carles Lama

Pianist | Steinway Artist | Founder & Director of KNS Classical 

Melanie Spanswick

Composer & Author at Schott Music | Junior Piano Faculty Member at Guildhall School of Music & Drama

Maiko Mori

Pianist | Associate Lecturer at University of Chichester 

Condition & Prizes

JUNIOR CATEGORY A (Online)

Open to all pianists between the ages of 6 – 9 years.

Please submit the complete application form with the link to the video performance

(10 minutes).

Application Fee: £ 45

PRIZE

Gold – Winners Gala Concert at Steinway Hall, Milan (Italy) in 2024 and Diploma

Silver – Diploma

Bronze – Diploma

JUNIOR CATEGORY B (Online)

Open to all pianists between the ages of 10 – 14 years.

Please submit the complete application form with the link to the video performance

(15 minutes).

Application Fee: £ 50

PRIZE

Gold – Winners Gala Concert at Steinway Hall, Milan (Italy) in 2024 and Diploma

Silver – Diploma

Bronze – Diploma

JUNIOR CATEGORY C (Online)

Open to all pianists between the ages of 15 – 17 years.

Please submit the complete application form with the link to the video performance

(20 minutes).

Application Fee: £ 55

PRIZE

Gold – Concert at Piano Forte Firenze Festival and Steinway Hall, Milan (Italy) in 2024 and Diploma

Silver – Winners Gala at Piano Forte Firenze Festival (Italy) in 2024 and Diploma

Bronze – Winners Gala at Piano Forte Firenze Festival (Italy) in 2024 and Diploma

The Schott Music Prize

All competitors are invited to participate in this special prize which has been generously funded by Schott Music. To take part, competitors will need to perform one work from the publication Simply Driven, a set of 5 virtuoso pieces composed by Melanie Spanswick (published by Schott Music), or two works from No Words Necessary, a set of 12 intermediate level pieces (published by Schott Music), also composed by Melanie Spanswick. The winner will receive a £50 voucher to spend online at Schott Music Schott Music 

RESULT

The result will be announced online on 1st of October 2023 and the prize winners will be invited to attend the Award Ceremony at Teatro Niccolini in Florence on 20th of October 2023

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For the Schott Music Prize, please pick two pieces from No Words Necessary (Intermediate Level) or one work from Simply Driven (Advance Level) composed by Melanie Spanswick and include your performance of your selected works in your complete competition video entry. You can purchase these books, No Words Necessary and Simply Driven as either hardcopies or digital downloads at the Schott Music Shop or via the link below.

Simply Driven

Simply Driven, published in 2020 by Schott Music in the renowned Edition Schott Series, is a collection of five piano pieces intended for advanced to virtuoso level pianists: Frenzy, Aisa: Sand, Silk and Love, Enigma, Chasm, and Time. Each piece proffers a completely different character, featuring various piano textures, colours and sound worlds, whilst still reflecting minimalist influences. All five pieces are distinctly tonal yet they offer a contemporary twist. Composed over a period of a year during 2018/2019, four of the five pieces were written for the composer’s friends who are all wonderful pianists; Aisa Ijiri, Yuki Negishi, Maiko Mori and Madalina Rusu, and each pianist has performed and recorded their respective piece. The title for the volume was inspired by comments from the composer’s family and friends, who remarked that the music often felt ‘driven’ or forward moving.

To find out more about each piece and to hear them, click here:

You can purchase the score in hard copy or digital download from Schott Music:

Or from Amazon:

Simply Driven (Amazon.co.uk)

Simply Driven (Amazon.com)

Simply Driven (Amazon.co.jp)

No Words Necessary

No Words Necessary is a collection of twelve piano pieces for the intermediate player, or for students of approximately Grade 3 – 7 level (of ABRSM, Trinity College London or London College of Music exams). This volume was written in Hong Kong during a visit in 2018, where the composer was working as an adjudicator for the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival. The pieces are characteristically tonal, but with a minimalistic influence. The title, No Words Necessary, was inspired by German poet and writer Heinrich Heine (1797 – 1856): ‘Where words leave off, music speaks”. Each work is intended to evoke thoughts, emotions or images in the mind. Many are reflective in character, with melodious tunes and poignant harmonies, but there are also more energetic, lively pieces too. You can find out more about No Words Necessary, and purchase them here: No Words Necessary (Amazon.co.uk)

DEADLINE

15th September 2023

APPLICATION FEE

Junior A : £45

Junior B : £50

Junior C : £55

If you would prefer to send your application fee by the international bank transfer:

Montecatini Piano Festival 

Bank: NatWest 

Account number: 58744789 

Sort code: 601437

IBAN: GB67NWBK60143758744789

BIC: NWBKGB2L

CONTACT

Official Website: www.tipamusic.com

Email: competition@tipamusic.com