Message from the President and CEO

Cliburn Concerts is celebrating 45 years! Over these years, this signature program has been one of the country’s premier concert series, welcoming the greatest artists of their generations: Yo-Yo Ma, Emmanuel Ax, Renée Fleming, Hilary Hahn, Joshua Bell, and so many more. But what we consider as the “unique selling proposition”—the secret sauce—of this series is the presence of our beloved Cliburn winners. These concerts present a wonderful opportunity to envelop them once again in the warmth of their adopted hometown and to stay closely connected with them as their careers continue to grow. This fall alone, we are extremely fortunate to have two of our most inspiring and supremely talented gold medalists.

Yunchan Lim wowed the world with his performances during the last Competition. From the first recital rounds to the concerto rounds, his videos have more than 17 million views on YouTube alone! And counting… Once again, the Cliburn is bringing the eyes of the world to Fort Worth. As importantly, we are thrilled to be working with him now to help him build the kind of career that he wants, artistically and personally. It is the Cliburn’s honor to be a significant part of his story, of what will surely be an extraordinary journey. Vadym Kholodenko, our gold medalist of 2013, is universally acclaimed by audiences, critics, and his own peers. His unique sound and approach to the music will conquer you—you certainly will not want to miss his stunning return to Fort Worth in his first Cliburn Concerts appearance in 9 years. Vadym will play his first concert at the Kimbell, then he also looks forward to performing on the cool, casual patio of The Post at River East the next day!

The Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition is back! After postponement from 2020, we are happy to finally welcome these pianists in this unique celebration of music making. Thirtynine artists from 16 countries will compete to have the chance to play at Bass Performance Hall with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Miguel Harth-Bedoya! We invite you to join us there for the Final Round, when six talented pianists will each perform one movement of a concerto. What a chance, for a lawyer, doctor, software engineer, academic, to play with a professional orchestra at this famed venue—the environment will be electric as they live out their dreams. And Jessie Montgomery—composer, educator, violinist—was recently appointed composer-in-residence for the prestigious Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She will be the guest of the multifaceted and multitalented Buddy Bray for our series at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. Seven musicians will bring you her different repertoire, with introductions by and discussions with the composer.

The season will go on in the new year with a slew of Cliburn Concerts debuts: mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, pianist Benjamin Grosvenor, and 2015 Cliburn Junior winner and 2021 Leeds Gold Medalist Alim Beisembayev! Plus the return of Joshua Roman, one of our favorite cellists. See y’all soon!