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DAMON GUPTON TO CONDUCT AMATEUR COMPETITION
COMPETITOR BIOS ONLINE

Gupton will conduct the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra in the Final Round; 
return participant Eberhard Zagrosek replaces withdrawn competitor


 

For immediate release

Contact:
Maggie Estes, director of marketing and public relations, mestes@cliburn.org, 817.738.6536.

FORT WORTH, Texas, May 26, 2016—The Cliburn announces that acclaimed conductor and actor Damon Gupton will take the baton for the Final Round of next month's Seventh Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition, which will take place June 19–25, 2016, in Fort Worth, Texas, in Van Cliburn Recital Hall (330 E. 4th Street) and Bass Performance Hall (4th & Commerce Streets). Gupton will replace Maestro Jacomo Rafael Bairos, who was previously announced as the Competition's conductor.

In addition, Eberhard Zagrosek, 73, of Germany, will compete in the Amateur, replacing a withdrawn competitor.

Seventy-two pianists will participate in the Competition; their bios are now available online at www.cliburn.org. A full listing is below.

ABOUT THE CLIBURN INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR PIANO COMPETITION
The Seventh Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition, featuring 72 of the world's finest amateur pianists, will take place June 19–25, 2016, in Fort Worth, Texas, in Van Cliburn Recital Hall (330 E. 4th Street) and Bass Performance Hall (4th & Commerce Streets). Tickets are $10 for the Preliminary Round, $15 for the Quarterfinal Round, and $20 for the Semifinal Round. Tickets to the Final Round and Awards Ceremony, at Bass Performance Hall, range from $10 to $60; visit cliburn.org or call 817.212.4280 for more information. 

The Cliburn Live webcast, hosted by Shields-Collins Bray, will air over 40 hours of performances, commentary, and interviews over the course of seven days. Visit Cliburn.org during the Competition Rounds for live-streaming coverage. Videos of the concerts will also be made available for on-demand viewing at Cliburn.org and YouTube shortly after each performance. While watching the live webcast, viewers can participate in a live chat with fellow fans from around the world to share thoughts and cheer on competitors. Viewers can also vote for their favorites to help decide the Audience Award winner.

The Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition is open to non-professional pianists age 35 and older who do not derive their principal source of income through piano performance or instruction. Established in 1999 as the first of its kind in the United States, the quadrennial festival promotes lifelong music-making as a vital part of daily life.

DAMON GUPTON, conductor
A native of Detroit, Michigan, Damon Gupton received his bachelor’s degree in music education from the University of Michigan. He studied conducting with David Zinman and Murry Sidlin at the Aspen Music Festival and with Leonard Slatkin at the National Conducting Institute in Washington, D.C. He served as American conducting fellow of the Houston Symphony for the 2004–2005 season, and his conducting appearances include the Detroit Symphony, The Cincinnati Pops, National Symphony Orchestra, NHK Orchestra of Tokyo, and Sphinx Symphony, as part of the 12th annual Sphinx Competition. He led the Sphinx Chamber Orchestra on a national tour which included performances at Carnegie Hall; a well-reviewed recording is available at White Pine Music. He is a winner of the Third International Eduardo Mata Conducting Competition, held in Mexico City. Musical collaborations include work with Marcus Miller, Kenn Hicks, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Byron Stripling, Tony DeSare, The Midtown Men, Kathleen Battle, and Jamie Cullum. Mr. Gupton held the post of assistant conductor of the Kansas City Symphony from 2006–2008.

An accomplished actor, Mr. Gupton graduated from the drama division of The Juilliard School. He is currently working with Billy Bob Thornton and William Hurt on Goliath, which premieres on Amazon in October. Other television credits include starring roles in The Player, The Divide, and Prime Suspect, as well as guest appearances on A&E’s Bates Motel, The Newsroom, Suits, Empire, Rake, Law & Order, Law & Order Criminal Intent, Conviction, The Unusuals, Third Watch, Hack, Drift, and Deadline. He appeared in the Academy Award-winning film Whiplash, as well as This is Forty, The Last Airbender, Helen at Risk, Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead, Unfaithful, and The Loretta Claiborne Story. Stage appearances include the Broadway production of Bruce Norris’ Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning Clybourne Park, Carter’s Way, Superior Donuts, Inked Baby, The Story, Meg’s New Friend, An American Daughter, True History and Real Adventures, Treason, and Othello.

Mr. Gupton merged his love of acting and conducting in a January 2016 appearance with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, when he conducted "A Night at the Oscars" at Bass Performance Hall.

THE COMPETITORS

UNITED STATES

Alabama
Kevin Grigsby, 41, marketing executive (Trussville)

California
Victor Alexeeff, 58, TV/film composer (Winnetka)
Gorden Cheng, 35, systems engineer (Rancho Santa Fe)
Brianna Donaldson, 35, nonprofit program director (Santa Cruz)
John Gutheil, M.D., 59, CEO/medical oncologist (La Jolla)
Tessa Knipe, 53, attorney (San Diego)*
David Lee, 37, software engineer (San Francisco)*
Yvonne Liu, 45, preschool music teacher (Foster City)*
Joann Oh, 41, office manager (Irvine)
Janet Sommerfeld, 53, freelance writer/producer (Palos Verdes Estates) 
Summer Stone, 39, client relations (Woodland Hills)

Colorado
Robert Biber, M.D., 64, retired physician (Evergreen)

District of Columbia
Simon Finlow, 60, retired IT project manager/database engineer*
Alexandre Leite, 54, banking executive*

Georgia
Utako Tanigawa, 61, computer science and information systems advisor (Dawsonville)*

Hawaii
Mari Yoshihara, 48, professor of American Studies (Honolulu)*

Indiana
Brad Dunn, 43, general manager/sommelier (Bloomington)

Iowa
Kuan-Chuen Wu, 42, mechanical engineering Ph.D student (Ames)*

Maryland
Kuei-Ling (Christine) Hsu, 39, pediatric dentist/assistant professor (Columbia)*

Michigan
Debby Pearlberg, 68, math tutor (Southfield)

Minnesota
Adrienne Johnson, 62, elementary school music teacher/playwright (Minneapolis)
Joseph Mercuri, M.D., 56, hospitalist physician (Saint Joseph)
Stephen Stouder, 59, healthcare executive (Apple Valley)

New Jersey
James Carter Cathcart, 62, scriptwriter/voice actor (Fort Lee)
Alfredo Garcia Jr., 62, financial advisor (Ho-Ho-Kus)*

New York
Andrea Davide Bonotto, 49, senior UI (user-interface) engineer (New York City)
Steven Boyce, 64, risk manager (New York City)
Lana C. Marina, 47, stay-at-home mother (New York City)
Bruce Pfeffer, 65, cell biologist (Amherst)
Michael Slavin, M.D., 65, ophthalmologist (Manhasset) 
Max Sung, M.D., 63, physician (New York City)
Rebecca Kao Wang, 47, actuary (lives in Tokyo, Japan)

North Carolina
Gregory Knight, 53, software engineer (Morganton)

Oklahoma
J. Spencer Thompson, M.D., 55, physician/radiation oncologist (Oklahoma City)

Pennsylvania
Robert Seppy, 58, healthcare executive (Philadelphia)
David Swenson, M.D., 64, physician (Butler)

Tennessee
 J. Todd Spangler, 54, administrative law judge (Knoxville)

Texas
Noah C. DeGarmo, M.D., 38, physician (Dallas)
Marisa Naomi Haines, 59, emerging technology strategist (Murphy)*
Clark Vann Griffith, 52, retired database programmer (Fort Worth)
Wei Ling Wang, 52, computer network technologist (Plano)

Utah
Jane Gibson King, 60, stay-at-home mother (Provo)
Madalyn Taylor, 66, retail store owner (Ogden)

Virginia
David Caldine, 61, software engineer (Forest)
Jeanne Backofen Craig, 46, homemaker/part-time minister of music and liturgy (Fairfax)

Washington
Colleen Adent, 54, homemaker (Vancouver)
Sandra Baumgarten, 37, stay-at-home mother (Brush Prairie) 
Lawrence Hsu, 58, real estate agent (Seattle)

INTERNATIONAL

Brazil
Marisa Naomi Haines, 59, emerging technology strategist*
Alexandre Leite, 54, banking executive (Sao Paulo)*

Canada
Ken Iisaka, 47, software engineer (Foster City, CA)*
Thomas Maurice, 56, senior program manager (Baltimore, MD)
Sean Sutherland, 39, entrepreneur/lecturer (Montreal, Quebec)*
Thomas Yu, M.D., 38, periodontist (Calgary)

China
Yvonne Liu, 45, preschool music teacher (Foster City, CA)*

Cuba
Alfredo Garcia Jr., 62, financial advisor*

France
Xavier Aymonod, 40, strategy consultant (Paris)

Germany
Matthias Fischer, M.D., 42, physician (Würzburg)
Eberhard Zagrosek, 73, retired physicist (Berlin)

Hungary
Daniel Bodonyi, 35, management consultant (Budapest)

Indonesia
Jasmin Tiodang, 44, stay-at-home mother (Carolina Municipio, Puerto Rico)

Ireland
Deirbhile Brennan, 46, accountant (Dublin)

Italy
Serena Costa, 36, homemaker (Milan)
Marco Di Marzio, 43, clinical pharmacist (Dublin, Ireland) 

Japan
Ken Iisaka, 47, software engineer*
Mihono Kawamata, 47, web designer (Yokohama)
Keiko Kircher, 35, college physics instructor (Champaign, IL)
Hajime Kobayashi, 50, management consultant (Niiza, Saitama)
Yasuo Kurimoto, M.D., 55, ophthalmologist (Kobe)
Kazuyuki Ohmura, 49, software engineering manager (Tokyo) 
Julie Saito, 57, international civil servant (Bagneux, France)
Utako Tanigawa, 61, computer science and information systems advisor*
Shinji Wada, 39, human resources (Foster City, CA)
Mari Yoshihara, 48, professor of American Studies*

Mexico
Jorge Zamora, 43, sales director (Mexico City)

Russia
Sergey Veretennikov, 40, IT consultant (Redkino, Tver Oblast)

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Sean Sutherland, 39, entrepreneur/lecturer*

South Africa
Tessa Knipe, 53, attorney*

South Korea
Yumi Ahn, 35, attorney (Singapore)

Taiwan
Kuei-Ling (Christine) Hsu, 39, pediatric dentist/assistant professor*
David Lee, 37, software engineer*
Kuan-Chuen Wu, 42, mechanical engineering Ph.D student*

Turkey
Saffet Bayka, 57, electrical engineering manager (Ankara)
Ipek Bozkurt, 36, professor of engineering management (Seabrook, TX)

United Kingdom
Simon Finlow, 60, retired IT project manager/database engineer*

* denotes competitor is representing more than one country

 

 

THE CLIBURN
The Cliburn advances classical piano music throughout the world. Its international competitions, education programs, and concert series embody an enduring commitment to artistic excellence and the discovery of new artists. Established in 1962, the quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition is widely-recognized as “one of the world’s highest-visibility classical-music contests” (Dallas Morning News) and remains committed to its original ideals of supporting and launching the careers of young pianists, age 18 to 30.  It shares the transformative powers of music with a wide global audience, through a fully-produced webcast and by providing commission-free, comprehensive career management and concert bookings to its winners. Rounding out its mission, the Cliburn also produces the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition for outstanding non-professional pianists 35 and older, and held its inaugural Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival in June 2015, for exceptional 13 to 17-year-old pianists.

Over a four-year cycle, the Cliburn contributes to North Texas’ cultural landscape with over 170 classical music performances for 150,000 attendees, through competitions, free community concerts, and its signature Cliburn Concerts series at Bass Performance Hall, the Kimbell Art Museum Piano Pavilion, and the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. It presents 1,000 in-school, interactive music education programs for 200,000 area elementary students. During the same time period, it garners the world’s attention with over one million visits from 155 nations for live concert and competition webcasts; 300 concerts worldwide booked for competition winners; more than 5,000 news articles about the Cliburn and its winners; regular national radio broadcasts to 245 public radio stations; and a PBS documentary airing in a potential 105 million households. 

Detailed information about the Cliburn and its programs is available at Cliburn.org.

 

Sponsors of the Seventh Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition are:
Alcon Foundation
BNSF Railway Foundation
Fifth Avenue Foundation
Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau
Pinnacle Bank
Southwest Bank
Texas Commission on the Arts

Cliburn Sponsors are:
Arts Council of Fort Worth
Crystelle Waggoner Charitable Trust
The Edith Winther Grace Charitable Trust, J.P. Morgan, Trustee
Sid W. Richardson Foundation
The Walton Family Foundation
William E. Scott Foundation

Exclusive Print Media Sponsor:
Star-Telegram

Official Piano of the Cliburn:
Steinway & Sons – North Texas / Houston

Official Hotel of the Cliburn:
Worthington Renaissance Fort Worth Hotel

 

 

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