Park University Will Be Represented At Quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition  

A trio of pianists from Park University’s International Center for  Music have been announced among the 30 selected to participate in the 17th Van Cliburn International  Piano Competition, to be held Wednesday, May 21, through Saturday, June 7, in Fort Worth.

This international quadrennial event, widely considered to be one of the most prestigious piano contests in the world, has launched the careers of numerous pianists since 1962, including Park ICM founder and  artistic director Stanislav Ioudenitch, who won the gold medal in 2001. 

This year, three of Ioudenitch’s students past and present will compete in The Cliburn:

• Yangrui Cai, graduate student – seeking Master of Music in Performance/Piano

cliburn.org/competitions/2025-cliburn-competition/2025-competitors/yangrui-cai

• Jiarui Cheng, freshman music performance/piano major

cliburn.org/competitions/2025-cliburn-competition/2025-competitors/jiarui-cheng

• Anastasia Vorotnaya, 2021 graduate artist diploma in music performance/piano and 2023  graduate certificate in music performance/piano 

cliburn.org/competitions/2025-cliburn-competition/2025-competitors/anastasia-vorotnaya 

Beyond cash awards, they will be competing for a chance at an international touring career. Medalists  win three years of comprehensive and personalized career management, including concert bookings,  artistic support and bolstered publicity efforts. The total Cliburn prize package is worth an estimated $2  million. 

Besides Ioudenitch, Park University has been well-represented in The Cliburn in recent years. Ilya  Shmukler, who earned a graduate certificate in music performance/piano from the Park ICM in 2021 and  a graduate artist diploma in music performance/piano in 2023, advanced to the final round in 2022, tying  for fourth. He won a cash prize of $10,000 as a finalist and was selected as the winner of the “Best  Performance of a Mozart Concerto,” earning an additional $5,000 prize. He also advanced to the  quarterfinals in the 2017 event, prior to becoming a Park student in 2019. At that same 2017 event, then  Park ICM graduate student Kenny Broberg (who earned a Master of Music degree from Park in 2021)  finished as the silver medalist. 

The 2025 Cliburn begins Wednesday-Friday, May 21-23, with all 30 competitors in the preliminary  round performing a 40-minute recital that will include a performance of a commissioned work composed by Gabriela Montero. The quarterfinals, with 18 performers advancing, will be Saturday and  Sunday, May 24-25, with each pianist playing a 40-minute recital. The semifinals will see 12  competitors, each performing a 60-minute recital and a Mozart concerto with the Fort Worth Symphony  Orchestra, Wednesday-Sunday, May 28-June 1. The finals, featuring six pianists with each performing  two concertos (one free choice, one from a specific list) will be held Tuesday-Saturday, June 3-7. The  awards ceremony will be held the evening of June 7.