The long-established Ferenc Liszt International Piano Competition will be held by Filharmonia Hungary at the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest between 12–19 September. This year again, contestants will have the chance to prove their talent in front of a prestigious jury. Every live round of the competition will be available live at the online platforms of Papageno.
The competition is organised jointly by Filharmonia Hungary, Hungary’s leading classical music concert promoter, and Liszt Academy of Music, as a part of the Budapest International Music Competition.
The 2021 Ferenc Liszt International Piano Competition will take place at the Liszt Academy of Music, founded in 1875. The Liszt Academy of Music is the only institution bearing the name of Ferenc Liszt to have been founded by the composer himself. At one of the most important venues of Hungary’s music scene, contestants will have the chance to prove their talent in front of a prestigious international jury.
Stars such as Olga Kern (Russia), Wu Ying (China), Boaz Sharon (USA), Olli Mustonen (Finland), Cyprien Katsaris (France), János Balázs (Hungary), Gábor Farkas (Hungary), and Tamás Vásáry (Hungary) will be among the jury members.
2021 will mark several anniversaries for the music competition. This year’s event is not only the 50th Budapest International Music Competition, but also the 210th anniversary of the birth of Ferenc Liszt and the 100th anniversary of the world-famous Liszt interpreter György Cziffra will be commemorated at the Ferenc Liszt International Piano Competition.
On this occasion, the competition material included several arrangements by Cziffra reflecting on Liszt’s works. This will enable the world’s most talented young pianists to become acquainted with the piano technique of György Cziffra, which is closely linked to the romantic mindset of improvisational nature made world famous by Liszt and Dohnányi, and which is intended to keep alive the golden age of the Hungarian piano school.
The preselection is closed! Out of 72 applicants from all over the world, 32 have qualified for the first round to be held on 13–14 September! Competitors come from prestigious schools such as the Royal Academy of Music in London, the Juilliard School in New York, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, and the Paris Conservatoire.
The opening concert of the competition takes place on 12 September. The Szent István Philharmonic Orchestra, with pianist János Balázs and conductor János Kovács, will perform works by Liszt.
Then, on 16 September, after the second round of the competition, Concerto Budapest and world-renowned pianist Olga Kern will perform Liszt’s Mephisto Waltz, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 (also known as the Pathetique Symphony). The evening will be conducted by András Keller. The next day, on 17 September, in the semi-finals, the jury and the public will hear the 6 contestants to have been qualified for it.
The deciding final round of the competition will take place on 18 September at 7 p.m. Be there when the winner of this year’s Piano Competition is announced. In the final, the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra will be conducted by Gergely Vajda, where the best will be revealed.
Finally, the 15th Ferenc Liszt International Piano Competition will end on 19 September with a joyous gala concert and awards ceremony.
