Applications for the Seventeenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition were due October 16, 2024, and included performance videos, musician references, press reviews, concert history, and personal statements.
APPLICATIONS RECEIVED
COUNTRIES & REGIONS
ALBANIA, ARMENIA, AUSTRALIA, AUSTRIA, BERMUDA, BULGARIA, CANADA, CHINA, CROATIA, DENMARK, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, FRANCE, GEORGIA, GERMANY, HONG KONG/CHINA, HUNGARY, ICELAND, INDONESIA, ISRAEL, ITALY, JAPAN, KAZAKHSTAN, KYRGYZSTAN, LATVIA, LITHUANIA, MALAYSIA, MEXICO, NETHERLANDS, NEW ZEALAND, NORWAY, POLAND, PORTUGAL, ROMANIA, RUSSIA, SERBIA, SINGAPORE, SLOVENIA, SOUTH KOREA, SPAIN, SWITZERLAND, TAIWAN/CHINA, TURKEY, UKRAINE, UNITED KINGDOM, UNITED STATES
COUNTRIES WITH THE MOST APPLICANTS
DON’T MISS THE ANNOUNCEMENT. CONNECT WITH THE CLIBURN.
THE SCREENING JURY
An initial screening panel reviewed all 340 applications, recommending 150 pianists to move forward. From those, the Screening Jury, listed below, selected the 77 to be invited to Fort Worth for these Screening Auditions. These five are live with us at PepsiCo Recital Hall to complete their task of choosing the 30 pianists to be named competitors of the Seventeenth Cliburn Competition.
PHILIPPE BIANCONI France I 1985 Cliburn Silver Medalist
Philippe Bianconi has been described as an artist whose playing is “always close to the soul of the music, filling the space with poetry and life,” (Washington Post). He has appeared with the world’s finest orchestras and recital venues, and is a leading interpreter of French music. He recently concluded his tenure as director of the American Conservatory of Fontainebleau, which cemented his reputation as one of the most distinguished artists of his generation; he continues to teach there and at the École Normale de Musique de Paris, where he makes his home.
GLORIA CHIEN Taiwan/China/United Sates
Gloria Chien has a diverse musical life as noted performer, concert presenter, and educator. She has appeared across the United States as recitalist and orchestra soloist, and performs frequently with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. She is founder and artistic director of String Theory (Chattanooga, TN), and with her husband, violinist Soovin Kim, serves as artistic director of the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival (Burlington, VT) and Chamber Music Northwest (Portland). Most recently, Ms. Chien was named advisor of the newly launched Institute for Concert Artists at the New England Conservatory of Music, and is artist-in-residence at Lee University.
ALEXANDER KOBRIN United States I 2005 Cliburn Gold Medalist
Called the “Van Cliburn of today” by the BBC, pianist Alexander Kobrin has placed himself at the forefront of today’s performing musicians. His prizewinning performances have been praised for their brilliant technique, musicality, and emotional engagement with the audience. Though widely acclaimed as a performer—including appearances with major orchestras and in prestigious venues worldwide—Mr. Kobrin’s teaching has been an inspiration to students through his passion for music. He joined the faculty at Eastman School of Music in 2017, regularly gives masterclasses throughout Europe and Asia, and has been co-director of the Hiiumaa Homecoming Festival in Estonia since 2020.
MOMO KODAMA Japan
Priased for her “impeccable technique and facility for crystalline sounds” (American Record Guide), Momo Kodama has built an impressive career including performances with such orchestras as the Berlin Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, NDR Elbphilharmonie, and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. With a repertoire that ranges from the classical to contemporary, she has premiered works by Toshio Hosokawa, Jörg Widmann, Christian Mason, and Olivier Messaien, of whom she is highly regarded as a distinguished interpreter. Ms. Kodama was appointed to the faculty of Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe in fall 2024.
ROBERTO PLANO Italy I 2005 Cliburn finalist
Roberto Plano has performed worldwide as soloist with the foremost orchestras and conductors, and as chamber musician and recitalist in major venues. His engaging personality has made him a favorite guest on radio programs such as NPR’s Performance Today, as well as on TV for PBS, France’s Mezzo, and Japan’s NHK. He has recorded for the Decca, Brilliant, Azica, Arktos, Sipario, DaVinci, and Concerto labels. Since 2023, Mr. Plano has been professor of piano at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano and international visiting professor at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.
THE CLIBURN SCREENING AUDITIONS
SUNDAY, MARCH 16
2:30 p.m.
MAGDALENE HO
Malaysia I age 21
AFTERNOON
BACH “Ricercar a 3” from The Musical Offering, BWV 1079
LISZT Après une lecture du Dante: Fantasia quasi sonata
2:58 p.m.
AIDAN MIKDAD
Netherlands I age 23
SCRIABIN Vers la flamme, op. 72
LISZT “Les cloches de Genève” from Années de pèlerinage
LISZT Mephisto Waltz No. 1
3:43 p.m.
RACHEL BREEN
United States I age 28
INTERMISSON
BULL Fantasia on Ut Re Mi Fa Sol La (“Hexachord Fantasia”)
STRAVINSKY Trois mouvements de Pétrouchka
4:11 p.m.
PEDRO LOPÉZ SALAS
Spain I age 27
HAYDN Sonata in A Major, Hob. XVI:12
SCRIABIN Etude in B Major, op. 8, no. 4
GINASTERA Sonata No. 1, op. 22
SUNDAY, MARCH 16
SCHEDULE 2025
EVENING
7:30 p.m.
YANG (JACK) GAO
China I age 21
GAO Impromptu (2023)
CHOPIN Impromptu No. 3 in G-flat Major, op. 51
LISZT Transcendental Etude No. 5 “Feux follets”
MESSIAEN “Regard de l’esprit de joie” from Vingt regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus
7:58 p.m.
ALEXANDER AGATE
United States I age 30
SCRIABIN Sonata No. 9, op. 68 (“Black Mass”)
PROKOFIEV Etude in C Minor, op. 2, no. 3
ROSENTHAL Variations on an Original Theme
8:43 p.m.
KORKMAZ CAN SAĞLAM
Turkey I age 25
INTERMISSON
GRANADOS “El amor y la muerte” from Goyescas, op. 11
RACHMANINOV Sonata No. 1 in D Minor, op. 28 (I)
9:11 p.m.
KAI-MIN CHANG
Taiwan/China I age 24
BEETHOVEN Bagatelles, op. 33, nos. 1–3
WAGNER–LISZT Overture to Tannhäuser
THE CLIBURN SCREENING AUDITIONS
MONDAY, MARCH 17
10:00 a.m.
DAVID KHRIKULI
Georgia I age 24
SCRIABIN Enigme, op. 52, no. 2
MORNING
SCRIABIN Danse languide, op. 51, no. 4
SCRIABIN Two Dances, op. 73
RACHMANINOV Étude-tableau in C-sharp Minor, op. 33, no. 9
RACHMANINOV Étude-tableau in D Minor, op. 39, no. 8
RACHMANINOV Serenade in B-flat Minor, op. 3, no. 5
LISZT–HOROWITZ Hungarian Rhapsody No. 15 in A Minor
10:28 a.m.
ZITONG WANG
China I age 26
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 24 in F-sharp Major, op. 78
MOZART–LISZT–BUSONI Fantasy on Two Themes from The Marriage of Figaro
11:13 a.m.
YI-CHUNG HUANG
Taiwan/China I age 23
INTERMISSON
BEETHOVEN—LISZT Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, op. 67 (I)
BUSONI Toccata, BV 287
WAGNER—LISZT Isoldens Liebestod
11:41 a.m.
ALICE BURLA
Canada I age 28
HAYDN Sonata in G Major, Hob. XVI:6
DEBUSSY Etude No. 8 “Pour les agréments”
LIGETI Etude No. 4 “Fanfares”
BARBER Sonata for Piano, op. 26 (IV)
SCHEDULE 2025
MONDAY, MARCH 17
2:30 p.m.
ÁDÁM BALOGH
Hungary I age 27
AFTERNOON
HAYDN Sonata in A-flat Major, Hob. XVI:46 (I)
SCRIABIN Sonata No. 7, op. 64 “White Mass”
KAPUSTIN Variations, op. 41
2:58 p.m.
ELIA CECINO
Italy I age 23
SHOSTAKOVICH Prelude and Fugue in B-flat Major, op. 87, no. 21
HAYDN Sonata in E Minor, Hob. XVI:34
GOUNOD—LISZT Waltz from the Opera Faust
3:43 p.m.
KIRON ATOM TELLIAN
Austria I age 22
INTERMISSON
SCRIABIN Sonata No. 2 in G-sharp Minor, op. 19 “Sonata-Fantasy”
SCRIABIN Etude, op. 65, no. 1
CHIN Etude No. 5 “Toccata”
STRAUSS–SCHULZ-EVLER Concert Arabesques on “By the Beautiful Blue Danube”
4:11 p.m.
ANGEL STANISLAV WANG
United States I age 22
MOZART Fantasia in D Minor, K. 397
LISZT Réminiscences de Don Juan
THE CLIBURN SCREENING AUDITIONS
MONDAY, MARCH 17
7:30 p.m.
JIAQING LUO
China I age 25
CHOPIN Preludes, op. 28, nos. 19–24
EVENING
FAURÉ Barcarolle No. 1 in A Minor, op. 26
FAURÉ Impromptu No. 2 in F Minor, op. 31
MESSIAEN “Regard de l’esprit de joie” from Vingt regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus
7:58 p.m.
SUNG HO YOO
South Korea I age 28
HAYDN Andante and Variations in F Minor, Hob. XVII:6
