In July, Sydney will host the next International Piano Competition, one of the most important musical events of the year for young musicians. The competition has been held in Australia since 1977 every four years. This year the jury will include the famous pianist Konstantin Shamrai, well known to our readers. "Unity" has repeatedly written about this musician, who in the past was the winner of this competition. Today we are talking with Konstantin about how the competition was held in past years, and about the current music festival, which will take place from July 5 to 22, 2023.
— Remind me, in what year did you participate in this competition? After all, you received the first prize and the prize of sympathy of the audience.
— It was the 2008 competition. Several musicians from Russia then participated. I remember that we flew to Australia for a long time, with a big delay, and started the performance a little sleepy because of Jet lag. The competition program was very difficult, but for me it was a plus, because I'm pretty hardy in this sense. I played seven times in five rounds of the competition, including two performances with orchestras.
— There are competitions dedicated to one composer, Rachmaninov, Chopin, but what about in Sydney?
— No, there is no one special composer at the Sydney competition, I would say that the repertoire is very wide. Classical concerts and contemporary music should be played, including Australian composers. This is a competition for pianists of a universal scale.
— How big is the line-up in terms of the number of participants, and from which countries will the performers come?
— This year, 32 participants. Except for a few Australians, there are musicians from various countries: Spain, Italy, Mexico, Canada, the USA, Japan, China and others. Among them are four young Russian pianists, there are also musicians from Ukraine and Belarus.
— In general, are there many famous pianists in Australia?
— Yes, quite a few. For example, a very interesting pianist Paavali Jumppanen, controversial in some matters, not afraid to take risks. Piers Lane, he is Australian but now based in London. And, of course, I never miss the opportunity to listen to Alexander Gavrilyuk when he performs in Australia, a wonderful pianist and virtuoso, and also my friend.
— Remind me where you studied music, did you start your studies in Siberia?
— I studied for many years, in different places and countries. Yes, I started in Novosibirsk, then studied in Moscow, at the Gnessin Music Academy, and also in Germany in Freiburg. And I did my PhD already here in Australia.
— Tell us about your professional life after the important competition in 2008.
— A lot has happened in these 15 years. I currently live and work in Adelaide. In 2011, I participated and won a competition in Germany, where I lived for several years. I performed in many cities of the world with concerts: in France, the Czech Republic, Serbia, Canada. Earlier, before covid and before the war, I performed in Russia with many well-known orchestras. I play a lot in different cities in Australia. I remain a concert pianist, for me this is the main goal of my life. It's not easy now because I also teach at the Elder Conservatory in Adelaide. But I think that having too much work is better than not having it at all.
— What are your favorite composers?
— I play the music of many composers, different styles, it is interesting to me, over time the list of composers changes. Now, for example, I started playing the baroque music of the French composer Rameau. What I play at the moment is what I love.
— This year you have a different task, you are a member of the jury. Is this your first time doing this?
— In this competition - yes, but I twice worked on the jury at the Vlasenko competition in Brisbane. Participation in the competition in Sydney is an honorable and exciting mission.
— And how does the jury work, does it deliberate or does each one put their own marks?
— This time there will be an unusual jury, there are six people and most of them are relatively young people, concert pianists. Artistic director is Piers Lane, Australian pianist. In different competitions, the jury works in different ways, but often discussions are not practiced and each member of the jury puts his mark, which are then simply summed up.
— I know that charitable organizations and people are of great importance in holding the competition, they are the ones who allocate funds for the prize fund, which is more than 235 thousand dollars. The winner will receive the first prize of $50,000. Where are the performances?
— The competition takes place in the Verbrugghen Hall of the Sydney Conservatory, and the final part, together with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, from July 18 to 22, in the concert hall of the Opera House.
— At what stages can music lovers come to listen to performances?
— All performances are open to the public. You can buy a ticket for one performance or for a whole series. Single tickets costs from 30 to 90 dollars. There are discounts for students and pensioners. More details can be found at www.thesydney.com.au/2023-competition/ticket-prices/
Events such as the Sydney Competition are important events for music lovers, and there are not many of them in this country. It is worth paying attention to such a festival of music. During the days of the competition, public can listen to the performances on the radio, but if you have the opportunity to come to listen to the hall, it is much better, you can feel the energy of each speaker. It seems to me that this year there will be a lot of interesting things at the piano competition.
Interviewed by Vladimir KOUZMIN
Tickets https://www.thesydney.com.au/2023-competition/ticket-prices/
