Today, the Leeds International Piano Competition announced the five pianists going to the final, concerto round of their competition. They are:
Social Media Reaction
Audience reaction on social media to the final results is mixed. There were quite a number of people who questioned why the judges did not select any female contestants.
“So you left out Yuzhang Li, seriously? Not even one of the women was worth the final? Very disappointed,” one user writes.
Another user writes, “Why hadn’t the jury chosen one single female competitor for the finale!? It is very sad we won’t hear the extraordinary and exciting Yuzhang Li and the absolutely wonderful Elisavjeta Kljuchereva in the concerto round. It’s kind of a shame!”
Others have also questioned why the competition did not allow audience votes on contestants other than the five finalists.
“Leeds is also not pleased if the Audience Favorite overrides its own choice so it limits the selection to Finalists,” one user writes.
Not all of the reactions were negative, however. There were also a number of posts congratulating the five finalists.
“Congratulations to all of you. I am in awe of your amazing talent and ability to memorise the works. Good luck in the Final,” Heather Turnham writes.
Chris Michael Tait, a trustee and board member of the Leeds International Piano Competition, also commented and said “Five tremendous players. These finals will be a real treat.”
The five finalists will play five different concerti on Friday, September 17th and Saturday, September 18th. Program as follows:
Friday 17 September, 7pm
Dmytro Choni | 28, Ukraine
Beethoven Concerto No.3 in C minor, Op.37
Alim Beisembayev | 23, Kazakhstan
Rachmaninov Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in A minor, Op.43
Thomas Kelly | 22, United Kingdom
Beethoven Concerto No.4 in G, Op.58
Saturday 18 September, 7pm
Kaito Kobayashi | 25, Japan
Bartók Concerto No.3 in E, Sz.119
Ariel Lanyi | 23, Israel
Brahms Concerto No.2 in B-flat, Op.83
To learn more about the competition, click here.
Did you watch the competition? if so, let us know your thoughts below!
