Leeds International Piano Competition 2024

[Beresford]

For the last 3 days I have been watching the 24 competitors in Round 2 of the Leeds Piano competition, live on YouTube, as the panel select 10 semi finalists. Highlights are being broadcast on R3 next week in the afternoons.

I am a bit put out as only one of the four pianists I particularly liked made it to the next round. The four I liked were:
1. Woo Young Cho from South Korea. She bravely played Boulez Notations, in a way that was quite moving, in music that I had previously found uninvolving.
2. Dina Ivanova, from Russia. Terrific enthusiasm; Debussy played the way I like, changing mood so quickly, although I acknowledge that there are other styles of playing that are enjoyable. She got a very big applause from the live audience.
3. Pedro Lopez Salas from Spain. No fuss. Made the piano sing. Perhaps played all his pieces the same way, as did several others.
4.Tomoharu Ushida from Japan. (The one who got through). Very emotional playing, Lizst and Yoshimatsu.

There was only one pianist I did not like - Xuehong Chen, playing Rachmaninov and Schubert, but not Schubert as we know it. Powerful but boring. He got through. You can listen to them all on YouTube, and via the leedspiano.medici.tv website, which is well organized.

Clearly the panel, 7 pianists out of 9, have different musical values to me. Not sure what is going on, beyond different tastes.

[Nick Armstrong]

(Looks like I have missed a character in the title - it should be 2024, not 204)

Sorted that for you

Thanks for flagging the competition - it had escaped me that it’s going on

[LMcD]

Sorted that for you

Thanks for flagging the competition - it had escaped me that it’s going on

Perhaps the BBC isn't too keen on reminding us of what are now its limited rights to broadcast material from this competition. It looks as though only the results and prize ceremony will be broadcast live by the BBC, on Radio 3.

[oddoneout]

Perhaps the BBC isn't too keen on reminding us of what are now its limited rights to broadcast material from this competition. It looks as though only the results and prize ceremony will be broadcast live by the BBC, on Radio 3.

Hence the low key tone of this today?

Georgia Mann.... looks forward to the new autumn season of live music on Radio 3, which includes broadcasts from the Edinburgh International Festival and Leeds International Piano Competition.

("Proms Countdown", midday serving. An odd title on my view but there.)

[Beresford]

......
I am a bit put out as only one of the four pianists I particularly liked made it to the next round.

I am now even more put out, as Tomoharu Ushida from Japan (the one who got through to the semis) did not make it to the final, despite a scintillating performance of Schubert D960, which had the audience in the hall standing, and many in tears of gratitude. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orjEuP17f4g
Imogen Cooper, chair of the panel, looked very sheepish to me as she announced the five "winners".

In 1969 Radu Lupu did not get past the semi-finals. Dame Fannie Waterman, who ran this competition, insisted that he reached the final, which he then won. Unfortunately she has now died. Ushida plays brilliantly, like Radu Lupu, and he will probably be as famous eventually.

[edashtav]

I am now even more put out, as Tomoharu Ushida from Japan (the one who got through to the semis) did not make it to the final, despite a scintillating performance of Schubert D960, which had the audience in the hall standing, and many in tears of gratitude. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orjEuP17f4g
Imogen Cooper, chair of the panel, looked very sheepish to me as she announced the five "winners".

In 1969 Radu Lupu did not get past the semi-finals. Dame Fannie Waterman, who ran this competition, insisted that he reached the final, which he then won. Unfortunately she has now died. Ushida plays brilliantly, like Radu Lupu, and he will probably be as famous eventually.

How are competitors 'put out' of the Leeds?
two rules:

4.6 If there are two candidates with equal scores competing for one place
and one is a woman candidate, we ask the Juror to consider advancing her first.

4.20 In the instance of a single gender outcome or an outcome that
significantly reduces the ratio of women to men in the Competition,
there will be a revote for all places.[source: Slippedd Disc]

I can understand why the Competition's inspiration, Fanny Waterman, may have wanted to advantage women and if it were a horn competition the smaller lung capacity of women is a limiting factor In terms of power but the Leeds is a PIANO COMPETITION and smaller fingers may help prestidigitation.
Time for rules to be changed?

[Ein Heldenleben]

How are competitors 'put out' of the Leeds?
two rules:

4.6 If there are two candidates with equal scores competing for one place
and one is a woman candidate, we ask the Juror to consider advancing her first.

4.20 In the instance of a single gender outcome or an outcome that
significantly reduces the ratio of women to men in the Competition,
there will be a revote for all places.[source: Slippedd Disc]

I can understand why the Competition's inspiration, Fanny Waterman, may have wanted to advantage women and if it were a horn competition the smaller lung capacity of women is a limiting factor In terms of power but the Leeds is a PIANO COMPETITION and smaller fingers may help prestidigitation.
Time for rules to be changed?

Smaller fingers don’t help “prestidigitation.” What really helps is having a large hand span. And above all being a musician not a finger waggler. The real problem is that there are now so many virtuosi around the supply of pianists greatly outstrips demand. There’s a case with just not bothering with competitions and creating so many more people bound for a precarious existence .

[edashtav]

Smaller fingers don’t help “prestidigitation.” What really helps is having a large hand span. And above all being a musician not a finger waggler. The real problem is that there are now so many virtuosi around the supply of pianists greatly outstrips demand. There’s a case with just not bothering with competitions and creating so many more people bound for a precarious existence .

I suppose I was thinking of Yuja Wang when writing that prestidigitation was a function of gender.

I do accept that large hand span is very helpful not in all music but that man of the mighty wide hands : Sergey Rachmaninov did compose piano music which was out of the reach of many women.

Yes quantity of piano virtuosi does exceed demand but economics teaches us that to have well working marketplace needs perfect knowledge. Competitions increase the knowledge of market promoters and that should help to ensure that they recruit the best at the lowest prices.

Before you respond , the present market for 'talent' is imperfect or broken [ e.g. BBC TV]

[Ein Heldenleben]

I suppose I was thinking of Yuja Wang when writing that prestidigitation was a function of gender.

I do accept that large hand span is very helpful not in all music but that man of the mighty wide hands : Sergey Rachmaninov did compose piano music which was out of the reach of many women.

Yes quantity of piano virtuosi does exceed demand but economics teaches us that to have well working marketplace needs perfect knowledge. Competitions increase the knowledge of market promoters and that should help to ensure that they recruit the best at the lowest prices.

Before you respond , the present market for 'talent' is imperfect or broken [ e.g. BBC TV]

All competitions really show is what a player is like under extreme pressure . Agents , promoters and indeed the BBC rely on tapes, auditions word of mouth ,and recitals more than anything else. On an economic note in fact competitions distort the market by creating a bogus winner’s premium.
The lack of interest by BBC TV in classical piano performance has negligible impact on the market. Simply because even at its height it showed so little classical piano performance. What’s really affecting TV talent at the moment are the cuts to factual programme making. Just about everyone I know in that side of the business has basically given up.

[gradus]

I don't know who played it but I enjoyed this afernoon's broadcast of Carnaval.

[Pulcinella]

I don't know who played it but I enjoyed this afernoon's broadcast of Carnaval.

From the website:

Robert Schumann
Carnival, Op.9
Performer: Ryan Zhu.

[edashtav]

From the website:

Robert Schumann
Carnival, Op.9
Performer: Ryan Zhu.

Thanks for that link : I enjoyed Ryan Zhu's performance,too.

[edashtav]

All competitions really show is what a player is like under extreme pressure . Agents , promoters and indeed the BBC rely on tapes, auditions word of mouth ,and recitals more than anything else. On an economic note in fact competitions distort the market by creating a bogus winner’s premium.
The lack of interest by BBC TV in classical piano performance has negligible impact on the market. Simply because even at its height it showed so little classical piano performance. What’s really affecting TV talent at the moment are the cuts to factual programme making. Just about everyone I know in that side of the business has basically given up.

Your view is valuable as it is London/ BBC informed. The same sources do not obtain when music societies across the country determine their choices of artists and repertoire.

[LMcD]

Thanks for that link : I enjoyed Ryan Zhu's performance,too.

[Anastasius]

How are competitors 'put out' of the Leeds?
two rules:

4.6 If there are two candidates with equal scores competing for one place
and one is a woman candidate, we ask the Juror to consider advancing her first.

4.20 In the instance of a single gender outcome or an outcome that
significantly reduces the ratio of women to men in the Competition,
there will be a revote for all places.[source: Slippedd Disc]

I can understand why the Competition's inspiration, Fanny Waterman, may have wanted to advantage women and if it were a horn competition the smaller lung capacity of women is a limiting factor In terms of power but the Leeds is a PIANO COMPETITION and smaller fingers may help prestidigitation.
Time for rules to be changed?

So hoow long has the Leeds competition been running ? Have fingers/whatever changed? No.

It is simply the fact that diversity overrules ability which is abhorrent to me.