the First International Chopin Piano tournament from Dec.1-5 in
Singapore .
The competition, which commemorates
the 200th anniversary of Chopin's birth, is being organised by the
Chopin Society ( Singapore ) and the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.
The Vietnamese pianists, who are aged between 10 to 16, will be competing in four of five categories.
Do Hoang Linh Chi, 13, and Hoang Ho Thu, 15, have a lot of experience
of international competition, said Ta Quang Dong, a lecturer at the
Vietnam National Academy of Music, who will be accompanying the
competitors.
"The contestants can decide for
themselves which Chopin pieces they wish to play. The Hanoi
International Piano Contest that was held last September helped the
contestants enrich their Chopin repertoire," Dong said.
"The competition is being organised for the first time. It is prestigious though because of the calibre judges."
The judging panel consists of Gabriel Kwok, who has been head of
Keyboard Studies at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts since
1989; Francesco Nicolosi, who is one of the most distinguished pianists
of the Italian tradition; Snezana Panovska, a highly acclaimed piano
professor, who stems from the Republic of Macedonia; Wojciech Switata, a
professor at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice; and
Warren Thompson, head of the School of Extension Studies at Sydney
Conservatorium./.
