The Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University Competition in piano and composition starts on 12 January 2022
Press release from 01/11/2022
On 12 January 2022, the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University Competition will begin, in which the best young musicians from German music academies will compete against each other in the subjects of piano and composition. The final concert and the prizewinners' concert with competition participants and the Konzerthausorchester Berlin under the direction of Leslie Suganandarajah will mark the festive conclusion.
The artistic director of the competition is Sebastian Nordmann, director of the Konzerthaus Berlin, and the patron is Gewandhaus conductor Andris Nelsons. Germany's oldest young classical music competition is jointly organised by the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, the Rectors' Conference of German Music Universities and the Berlin University of the Arts.
28 pianists and 19 composers from 21 German music academies will take part in the competition. They will be competing for follow-up engagements, CD productions and prize money totalling over 20,000 euros, including the "Prize of the Federal President", the only cash prize awarded by the Federal President in the field of music.
The judging rounds for the pianists will take place from 12 to 14 January in the concert hall of the UdK Berlin with free admission. Evgeni Koroliov will chair the jury for the piano category. The composition competition has been moved to digital due to the pandemic. The jury, chaired by Detlev Glanert, will view the 19 scores and videos submitted and select the winners in this way. All video recordings submitted by the composers can also be viewed on the competition website from 13 January.
On 15 January, the four best pianists will present the 1st or 2nd Piano Concerto by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy in a final concert in the concert hall of the UdK Berlin, accompanied by the Konzerthausorchester Berlin under the direction of Leslie Suganandarajah. Just one day later, on
16 January, the prizewinners will perform at the Konzerthaus am Gendarmenmarkt. This concert is particularly interesting for fans of contemporary music: In addition to an overture and a piano concerto by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, the programme will include the first prize-winning composition and the commissioned work of the competition for piano.
Parallel to the competition, the winners of the last Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University Competition 2021 will present themselves in the series of espresso concerts in the Konzerthaus.
All participants at a glance:
www.fmb-hochschulwettbewerb.de/wettbewerb-2022/teilnehmende-2022/
Audience information on the applicable hygiene regulations
The 2G regulation applies to the evaluation rounds and the final concert in the concert hall of the UdK Berlin: The audience must be vaccinated or recovered to attend these events and wear an FFP2 mask.
At the prizewinners' concert in the Konzerthaus Berlin, the so-called 2G-plus rule applies: All persons (including those who have been vaccinated several times and "boostered", as well as those who have recovered) who are admitted must also be tested negative for 2G (antigen test, not older than 24 hours) and wear an FFP2 mask.
Tickets for the concert on 16 January 2022 and the espresso concerts in the Konzerthaus Berlin:
www.konzerthaus.de or phone (030) 2030 92101
Tickets for the concert on 15 January 2022 in the concert hall of the UdK
Berlin: www.reservix.de
Press enquiries and accreditations
Claudia Assmann
Tel. (030) 3185 2456
presse@fmb-hochschulwettbewerb.de
www.fmb-hochschulwettbewerb.de
FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY UNIVERSITY COMPETITION 2022
Public piano competitions
12 to 14 January 2022, from 10 a.m.
Berlin University of the Arts Concert Hall
Piano final concert
15 January 2022 at 4 pm
Berlin University of the Arts Concert Hall
Konzerthausorchester Berlin, conducted by Leslie Suganandarajah
Concert of the prizewinners
16 January 2022 at 7 pm
Konzerthaus Berlin, Great Hall
Konzerthausorchester Berlin, conductor: Leslie Suganandarajah
Espresso concert
12 January 2022, 2 pm
Claire Wells, prizewinner violin 2021
Konzerthaus Berlin
Espresso concert
19 January 2022, 2 pm
Trio E.T.A., prizewinner piano trio 2021
Konzerthaus Berlin
All competitions, the final and the prizewinners' concert will be streamed live, some of the videos will also be uploaded to the website at www.fmb-hochschulwettbewerb.de.
The composition submissions will be uploaded to the competition website on 13 January 2022 and made available for viewing there.
Information on the competition, the concerts, the juries, all participants and the prizes at www.fmb-hochschulwettbewerb.de .