Fort Worth, Texas, June 25, 2015—Jon Nakamatsu, chairman of the jury for the First Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition (June 21–28, 2015), at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas, announced the six pianists advancing to the Semifinal Round.
The semifinalists are:
Alim Beisembayev, 17 (Kazakhstan)
Youlan Ji, 16 (China)
Yukine Kuroki, 16 (Japan)
Wei Luo, 16 (China)
Evelyn Mo, 16 (United States)
Arsenii Mun, 16 (Russia)
For the complete schedule of Semifinal Round performances, click here.
For downloadable press photos of the semifinalists click here.
During the two days of the Quarterfinal Round (June 23–24), each competitor played a 30-minute recital. They performed live at Ed Landreth Auditorium before the seven-member jury and hundreds of patrons, as well as to a worldwide audience via the Competition’s live, fully produced webcast. View the entire Competition live and on demand at Cliburn.org.
THE SEMIFINAL ROUND
The Semifinal Round will be held in two phases over two days.
In Phase I (June 25), each of the six pianists will perform a recital not to exceed 40 minutes in length. The recital must include one work written after 1950. The remainder of the program may be chosen by the pianist. Repertoire from the Preliminary and Quarterfinal Rounds may not be repeated.
In Phase II (June 26), each of six pianists will perform the first movement of the concerto submitted for the Final Round with piano accompaniment. Pianists Evan Mitchell and Natsuko Ejiri will accompany the semifinalists.
Competitors will keep the same performance order as determined at last Saturday night's Opening Dinner and Draw Party for Phase I. For Phase II, order will be decided by the Cliburn based on accompanist scheduling and repertoire.
SEMIFINALISTS’ BIOS AND CORRECTED PERFORMANCE TIMES
THURSDAY, JUNE 25
Alim Beisembayev
3:00–3:40 p.m.
Wei Luo
3:45–4:25 p.m.
Arsenii Mun
4:45–5:25 p.m.
Yukine Kuroki
7:30–8:10 p.m.
Youlan Ji
8:15–8:55 p.m.
Evelyn Mo
9:15–9:55 p.m.
FRIDAY, JUNE 26
Beginning at 7:00 p.m.
Arsenii Mun
Youlan Ji
Wei Luo
20-minute intermission
Alim Beisembayev
Evelyn Mo
Yukine Kuroki
ABOUT THE FIRST JUNIOR PIANO COMPETITION AND FESTIVAL
The First Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival for 13 to 17-year-old pianists, takes place June 21–28, 2015, in Ed Landreth Auditorium and PepsiCo Hall on the campus of TCU, and welcomes 23 of the world's finest young pianists to Texas. The competitors hail from all over the world, representing 13 countries: the United States (9), China (5), Canada, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Japan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Tajikistan. A selection committee chose the competitors from an impressive applicant pool of 160 young pianists, through online applications and video submissions of 15 to 20 minutes. The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra will perform with each of three finalists under the baton of dynamic conductor Mei-Ann Chen. Competition performances will be open to the public, and will also be webcast live at Cliburn.org. For a complete listing, biographies, and repertoire, please visit: http://www.cliburn.org/competitions/junior-competition/competitors/
JURY: 1997 Cliburn Gold Medalist, in-demand touring artist, and esteemed adjudicator Jon Nakamatsu (United States) is serving as chairman of the jury. Other jury members include: Lydia Artymiw (United States), Christopher Elton (United Kingdom), Mari Kodama (Japan), John Kimura Parker (Canada), Orli Shaham (Israel/United States), and Blanca Uribe (Colombia).
TICKETS: Tickets are on sale now and all seating is general admission. Tickets to individual concerts are $20 for each concert of the Semifinals and $40 for the Finals. For additional information about and to purchase tickets for the First Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival in Fort Worth, please visit http://www.cliburn.org/competitions/junior-competition/tickets
WEBCAST: Available at Cliburn.org, the webcast will bring the Competition to life around the world in real time with hours of live broadcasts of performances, interview segments, and awards ceremonies over the 8-day period. All performances and videos are available live and on demand. Piano duo Anderson & Roe are serving as webcast hosts for the first time ever. They are providing competitor information and Competition commentary, and conducting interviews to provide behind-the-scenes insight.
ABOUT 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 (fifteenth edition: May 25–June 10, 2017). It shares the transformative powers of music with a wide global audience, through fully-produced webcasts 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 Junior Piano Competition and Festival for exceptional 13 to 17-year-old pianists (inaugural edition: June 21–28, 2015) and the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition for outstanding non-professional pianists age 35 and older (seventh edition: June 19–25, 2016).
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 PBS documentary, Virtuosity, the story of the Fourteenth Cliburn Competition, which will air nationally on July 31, 2015, at 9 p.m. ET, in a potential 105 million households.
Detailed information about the Cliburn and its programs is available at Cliburn.org.
Corporate and Foundation Sponsors of the First Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival are:
Alcon
BNSF Railway Foundation
Ann L. & Carol Green Rhodes Charitable Trust, Bank of America, Trustee
Fifth Avenue Foundation
Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau
Fort Worth Piano Teachers Forum
Frances C. and William P. Smallwood Foundation
The Frill Foundation
GWR Foundation Fund of the Community Foundation of North Texas
The Garvey Texas Foundation
Jill and Charles Fischer Foundation
Martha V. Leonard Fund of the Community Foundation of North Texas
Mercedes T. Bass Charitable Corporation
National Endowment for the Arts
Northern Trust
Pier 1 Imports
Pinnacle Bank
Qurumbli Foundation
Texas Commission on the Arts
The Ryan Foundation
Tarrant Technology
William E. Scott Foundation
Exclusive Print Media Sponsor:
Star-Telegram
Official Piano:
Steinway & Sons – North Texas / Houston
Official Sponsors of the Cliburn:
Amon G. Carter Foundation
Ann L. & Carol Green Rhodes Charitable Trust, Bank of America, Trustee
Arts Council of Fort Worth & Tarrant County
BNSF Railway Foundation
Crystelle Waggoner Charitable Trust
ExxonMobil / XTO Energy
Jane and John Justin Foundation
Mercedes T. Bass Charitable Corporation
The Pangburn Foundation, J.P. Morgan, trustee
Sid W. Richardson Foundation
Steinway & Sons – North Texas / Houston
The Burnett Foundation
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