Fifty Quarterfinalists Chosen For The 2021 Honens International Piano Competition

Fifty pianists from 18 countries have been chosen to compete in the Quarterfinals of Canada's tenth Honens International Piano Competition, despite the challenges presented by a global pandemic. The Applicant Screening Jury evaluated 130 candidate submissions based on proposed Competition programming, experience relative to age, and reference letters.

The Quarterfinals / International Audition Round is currently scheduled to take place in New York (March 11 to 13) and Berlin (March 22 to 24) as long as the Competition can do so safely while maintaining the highest possible artistic standard. The health and safety of those involved in the Competition remains the organization's top priority and Honens continues to consider various scenarios given the evolving pandemic.

"We were astounded at the quality of the 130 applicants. Narrowing them down to only 50 was a very difficult task, but the members of the Applicant Screening Jury were up to the challenge. We are confident in the 50 amazing young artists we chose, and hope to see a number of the other applicants return in 2024 to apply for the next Competition," says Honens Artistic Director Jon Kimura Parker, who, along with acclaimed pianists Bernadene Blaha, David Jalbert, and Hyeyeon Park, was a member of the Applicant Screening Jury.

For the Quarterfinals, each of the 50 pianists performs a 40-minute self-programmed solo recital and completes an interview with an arts journalist. All performances are recorded on video for review by the First Jury, comprised of both pianists and arts professionals: Katherine Chi, chair (2000 Honens Prize Laureate), Loie Fallis (Vice-President of Artistic Planning of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra), Roman Rabinovich (Prizewinner at the 2008 Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition), and Gilles Vonsattel (2009 Honens Laureate and recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant). Ten pianists will be chosen to advance to the Semifinals in Calgary. Semifinalists will be announced Spring 2021. The Competition culminates with the Semifinals and Finals in Calgary, Canada from October 14 to 22, 2021 with collaborative musicians violinist Martin Beaver, Viano String Quartet, and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of celebrated conductor Peter Oundjian. The triennial Honens International Piano Competition awards its Prize Laureate $100,000 (CAD) and a comprehensive three-year artistic and career development program. The prize, awarded to the pianist who most embodies Honens' philosophy of the Complete Artist, is one of the largest of its kind in the world.

Calgary philanthropist Esther Honens dreamed of discovering and launching the careers of the world's most promising pianists. In 1991, she established The Esther Honens International Piano Competition Foundation with a gift of $5 million, creating a legacy for musicians and music lovers around the world. Legacy Partners follow in Esther Honens' footsteps by securing Honens' future and ensuring its continued ability to offer a broad scope of programming and community outreach projects.

For additional information about the 2021 Honens International Piano Competition, please visit, honens.com/2021.

Quarterfinalists:

Pianist / Age* / Country of Origin

Kevin Ahfat / 27 / Canada
Adam Balogh / 23 / Hungary
Nathan Ben-Yehuda / 27 / United States
Xander Benham / 25 / United Kingdom
Giovanni Bertolazzi / 23 / Italy
Rachel Breen / 25 / United States
Łukasz Byrdy / 27 / Poland
Yangrui Cai / 20 / China
SaeYoon Chon / 26 / South Korea
Dmytro Choni / 28 / Ukraine
Federico Gad Crema / 22 / Italy
Timofey Dolya / 27 / Russia
Benjamin Dominguez / 23 / United States
Dan Evans / 26 / United Kingdom
Motti Fang Bentov / 23 / Israel
Robert Fleitz / 28 / United States
George Fu / 30 / United States
Umi Garrett / 21 / United States
Anna Geniushene / 30 / Russia
Francesco Granata / 22 / Italy
George Harliono / 20 / United Kingdom
Jaeden Izik-Dzurko / 22 / Canada
Carter Johnson / 25 / Canada
Simon Karakulidi / 24 / Russia
Aleksandra Kasman / 26 / United States
Minkyu Kim / 26 / South Korea
Ji Yong Kim / 30 / United States
Maxim Kinasov / 28 / Russia
Elizaveta Kliuchereva / 22 / Russia
Bruce (Xiaoyu) Liu / 24 / Canada
Danilo Mascetti / 28 / Italy
Dominic Muzzi / 27 / United States
Kyle Orth / 30 / United States
Illia Ovcharenko / 20 / Ukraine
Élisabeth Pion / 25 / Canada
Zhora Sargsyan / 26 / Armenia
Philipp Scheucher / 28 / Austria
Sophiko Simsive / 29 / Georgia
Lorenzo Soulès / 29 / France
Sergey Tanin / 26 / Russia
Jean-Luc Therrien / 27 / Canada
Arthur Wang / 20 / Canada
Derek Wang / 23 / United States
Yun Wei / 27 / China
Ka Jeng Wong / 30 / Hong Kong
Alexander Yau / 26 / Australia
Gabriel Yeo / 23 / Germany
Joon Yoon / 28 / South Korea
Dmitry Yudin / 20 / Russia
Angie Zhang / 25 / United States

*Age as of October 22, 2021