International Violin Competition of Indianapolis announces its finalists

September 21, 2010 at 4:45 AM

Congratulations to the six finalists in the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis!

Andrey Baranov, 24, of Russia
Benjamin Beilman, 20, of the United States
Clara Jumi-Kang, 23, of South Korea/Germany
Antal Szalai, 29, of Hungary
Haoming Xie, 20, of China
Soyoung Yoon, 25, of South Korea

The two-part finals begin Wednesday. Three finalists each night will play with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra on Wednesday and Thursday evenings in the first round, and again on Friday and Saturday evenings for the second round.

I will be in Indianapolis for the finals and writing about the event here on Violinist.com. You can watch the events live online at the competition's website, http://www.violin.org.

From Marc Villeneuve
Posted on September 21, 2010 at 12:24 PM

Laurie: There is also a concert tonight of Augustin Hadelich and it s broadcat live on internet, on the website. Well,I think so...

From Adam korczynski
Posted on September 21, 2010 at 5:28 PM

A very nice selection of finalists, all of them are internationally known. They are also playing some very nice concertos in the finals, and all of them have an amazingly high standard. I will be following the finals :)

From Jim Tsai
Posted on September 22, 2010 at 3:31 AM

Wish you were here for the semifinals, Laurie. Hard to believe but the general level of playing has increased since 2006, which must have made choosing the final 6 extraordinarily difficult. I saw all but six of the semifinal performances live but was still a bit surprised at who didn't make the final cut. It's been intimated to me after speaking to some informed folks here (who shall remain unnamed) that the jury was rather split on who they chose.

Augustin was dazzling at tonight's performance. I heard sobs in the audience when he played the simple yet moving Liebeslied as an encore to a virtuosic program that included Beethoven sonata #8, Schnittke sonata #1, Ysaye solo sonata #4, Poulenc sonata, and Ziguenerweisen. The scene sort of reminded me of Horowitz playing in Moscow and ending the concert with Traumerei as one of his encores.

I am not a big enough fan of the Mozart concertos to stomach hearing the Mozart 5 three times and Mozart 3 two times in the coming round. So I'm going to follow the rest of the competition from home. Have a good time in Indianapolis, Laurie If you need a break from the competition it's a nice walk/jog along the central canal next to the History Center where the semifinals were held, and the Indianapolis Museum of Art and the adjacent Lilly House (country estate) north of downtown are also worth a visit.

From Jim Tsai
Posted on September 22, 2010 at 4:09 AM

Laurie,

I do hope you can attend two of the side events that are scheduled during the later part of the Competition, and share with us your thoughts. One is Spotlight on Today's Makers exhibition scheduled for Sept 25 and 26 at the History Center, where you can meet and try out instruments by some of the top modern makers (all of whom are past prize winners at violinmaking competitions). The other is Old vs New, which is scheduled for Saturday 25th after the last finals performances at 10:45-11:30 pm in Hilbert Circle Theater. ISO concertmaster Zach De Pue will audition for the public vintage violins (prob including Strads and del Gesus) along with the modern instruments by the makers mentioned above. Or, in violinist.com parlance, a "shootout".

See p. 52 of the program book for other events that may be of interest.

From Laurie Niles
Posted on September 22, 2010 at 5:21 AM

Jim, I absolutely plan to be there.

From Jim Tsai
Posted on September 22, 2010 at 11:08 AM

For everyone who can't be in Indy for the experience, thank you.

From Marc Villeneuve
Posted on September 22, 2010 at 1:31 PM

Jim: I have been speaking to one of my former teachers who is member of jury in great violin competition of the level of Indi. I wont name it, but there is now a general consensus now,because of the level of the players, that the most flashy players do not make it anymore after the second round or for the first prize. I am talking about the ones who focus on brilliancy and virtuosity.

They are seeking for the most original and complete musician, and this is what happened lately in Montreal with all the prize winners, and same will occur in Indianapolis, I am sure about it. It ain't just enough anymore to be a dazzling player. Profound understanding of music and true inspiration is the main rule. In the seventies, it was common for a first prize to have performed an incredible Paganini or Tchaikovski concerto in the finals,coupled with a transcendantal "Last Rose of summer "or a "Nel cor più non me sento" in the second round... These days are over now, because we know that to distinguish the most gifted of all these skillful players, a very simple sonata like the Mozart in g major can become a "killer" for a Paganini-Sarasate show-stopper virtuoso.

Augustin Hadelich is the perfect example of the ideal violinist; great virtuosity,for sure,but profound musicianship, first. His last night recital program and the way he performed it is an inspiring example of all the qualities we are seeking in the level of a competition such as Indianapolis or Montreal...

From Magdalena Geka
Posted on September 22, 2010 at 8:41 PM

This competition is so amazing and I believe there are no such problems in the US, but I live in Paris and both audio and video streaming is so awful (it just stop every 10 seconds with no chance of a continuing and I'm talking about archive, not the live)...I will cry the whole night about not hearing/seeing those wonderful people...:(((

From Jim Tsai
Posted on September 23, 2010 at 3:22 AM

"...there is now a general consensus now,because of the level of the players, that the most flashy players do not make it anymore after the second round or for the first prize. I am talking about the ones who focus on brilliancy and virtuosity.

They are seeking for the most original and complete musician, and this is what happened lately in Montreal with all the prize winners, and same will occur in Indianapolis, I am sure about it.."

Marc, I don't think anyone would argue with you on these points on their own. But if you're implying that some of the players in Indy didn't advance to the finals because they focused only on being brilliant or virtuosic I doubt you can find many examples. The ones I am thinking of, ones who were probably on the short list but didn't pass the final cut, did not play particularly flashy pieces and were every bit as musical and sensitive as anyone who did make the finals. Again, I'm not naming names. It also kinda undercuts your point when two of the finalists ended their semifinal programs with the Waxman Carmen fantasy, a definite crowd pleaser and a prime example of flash. Understand that I'm not saying that those who chose to play the Waxman were not musical or undeserving of being in the finals.

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International Violin Competition of Indianapolis announces its finalists

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