Cd Queen Elisabeth Competition

CD QUEEN ELISABETH COMPETITION

Session Violin 2009

Ref. : QEC2009 Release Benelux : 06 juin 2009 Advised price: 45 €

www.cd-elisabeth.be

CONTACT PRESSE

SPCC - SÉVERINE PROVOST, Culture & Communication Rue des Chartreux 17- 1000 Bruxelles T : +32 (0)2 644 61 91 - F : + 32 (0)2 776 82 09 - Gsm : +32 (0)497 48 01 55 E-mail : [email protected] www.cd-elisabeth.be/press

2 Editorial

Throughout the month of May, in both the Brussels Conservatory and the Centre for Fine Arts, the candidates in the Queen Elisabeth Competition attracted enthusiastic audiences, including music professionals from all over the world, who were moved by the artistic sensibility and talent of dozens of young musicians who demonstrated a great commitment to their art. Radio, television, and the Internet made it possible to reach a wider public with a broad repertoire of chamber music, including works (compulsory for each candidate) by Eugène Ysaÿe and the Belgian composer Claude Ledoux, as well as Mozart concertos with the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie and Paul Goodwin. In addition, accompanied by the National Orchestra of Belgium under Gilbert Varga, the finalists played concertos by various composers and the compulsory work by Korean composer Cho Eun-Hwa, winner of the Grand Prize in our International Composition Competition 2008. Each year’s Queen Elisabeth Competition is a celebration of music. This young generation of violinists, an ever increasing number of whom come from Asian countries, has once more had the good fortune to be given a hearing by a jury of artists whose renown is matched only by the generosity with which they give their time. This set of live recordings allows you to experience the atmosphere and excitement of this springtime Brussels rendezvous, which remains the great festival of the violin and whose prestige is constantly growing. Above all, however, it will allow you to be one of the first to discover a number of violinists of the highest quality who will, we expect, partly thanks to their success at the Competition, go on to solo careers in the world’s great concert halls. The organisers of the Competition and all of our partners are delighted to be able to share with you this celebration of artistic excellence and of fine young musicians with bright futures ahead of them.

Michel-Etienne Van Neste, Secretary General of the Queen Elisabeth Competition

3 Press Release

As it does every year, the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition of Belgium has released a set of recordings: the 3-CD box set Violin 2009 has been available since Saturday 6 June in all record shops and in a great many newsagents and supermarkets. Despite the public holiday on Monday 1 June, extremely tight production deadlines have been met once again and the box set was on the shelves less than one week after the announcement of the results!

For music-lovers in general and lovers of the Queen Elisabeth Competition in particular, this 3- CD box set is the best way to relive the most beautiful musical moments of the Competition. It also offers an opportunity to discover new violinists, those who will be filling the world's great concert halls in the years to come!

This year, the semi-finals and finals were recorded: the box set, accordingly, offers pieces for solo violin and for violin and piano, as well as works performed with an orchestra: on the one hand, a Mozart concerto from the semi-finals, played by Kim Suyoen (4th prize), with the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie conducted by Paul Goodwin, and on the other, three great concertos from the repertoire performed during the finals, accompanied by the National Orchestra of Belgium, conducted by Gilbert Varga. That is to say, it contains the Tchaikovsky concerto played by Ray Chen (1st prize), the Concerto No. 1 by Paganini as played by Lorenzo Gatto (2nd prize), and Shostakovich's Concerto No. 1, performed by Ilian Garnet (3rd prize). In addition, true to the Queen Elisabeth Competition's tradition of promoting contemporary compositions, the two compulsory works – the one, V…, commissioned from the Belgian composer Claude Ledoux and the other, Agens by Cho Eun-Hwa, winner of the Queen Elisabeth International Composition Competition – are also to be found in the box set.

For the last two years the Queen Elisabeth Competition has no longer turned to a particular label, but has itself brought out these recordings as productions of its own.

Following the success of the first (piano) bonus CD in 2007, the Queen Elisabeth Competition has repeated the formula for this year's violin competition: the bonus disc, Encore, was available to those who placed advance orders and is still available until stocks run out. It is devoted to the chamber music of the 20th century and includes works by Stravinsky, Enescu, Prokofiev, and Schnittke.

4 Program CD 1 & 2 & 3 | Bonus-CD

1-3 Pyotr TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893) – Concerto in D major op. 35 – Ray CHEN ALLEGRO MODERATO – CANZONETTA – ALLEGRO VIVACISSIMO

4-7 Dmitry SHOSTAKOVICH (1906-1975) – Concerto n. 1 in A minor op. 77 (99) – Ilian GÂRNET NOCTURNE – SCHERZO – PASSACAGLIA – BURLESQUE

1-3 Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791) – Concerto n. 4 in D major KV 218 – KIM Suyoen ALLEGRO – ANDANTE CANTABILE – RONDEAU [CADENZA: F. BEYER – R. LEVIN]

4 Guiseppe TARTINI (1692-1770) / Fritz KREISLER (1875-1962) – Devil’s Trill Sonata – YOON Soyoung

5-7 Nicolò PAGANINI (1782-1842) – Concerto n. 1 in D major op. 6 – Lorenzo GATTO ALLEGRO MAESTOSO – ADAGIO ESPRESSIVO – RONDO: ALLEGRO SPIRITOSO

1-4 Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827) - Sonata n. 10 in G major op. 96 - Nikita BORISOGLEBSKY ALLEGRO MODERATO – ADAGIO ESPRESSIVO – SCHERZO (ALLEGRO) – POCO ALLEGRETTO

5-7 Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918) – Sonata in G minor – KIM Suyoen ALLEGRO VIVO – INTERMÈDE – FINALE

8 Eugène YSAŸE (1858-1931) – Sonata in E major op. 27/6 – CHEN Jiafeng

9 Claude LEDOUX (°1960) – V… – Ray CHEN

10 CHO Eun-Hwa (°1973) – Agens – Nikita BORISOGLEBSKY

Piano: Eliane REYES (CD2/4 & CD3/5-7), Dana PROTOPOPESCU (CD3/1-4), Thomas HOPPE (CD3/9) Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie – Paul Goodwin, conductor (CD2/1-3) National Orchestra of Belgium – Gilbert Varga, conductor (CD1, CD2/5-7, CD3/10)

Program bonus CD Encore

1-4 Igor STRAVINSKY (1882-1971) – Divertimento – Vineta SAREIKA SINFONIA – DANSES SUISSES – SCHERZO – PAS DE DEUX

5-7 George ENESCU (1881-1955) – Sonata n. 3 in A minor op. 25 – Lorenzo GATTO MODERATO MALINCONICO – ANDANTE SOSTENUTO E MISTERIOSO – ALLEGRO CON BRIO MA NON TROPPO MOSSO

8-12 Sergey PROKOFIEV (1891-1953) – 5 Melodies op. 35bis – CHEN Jiafeng ANDANTE – LENTO MA NON TROPPO – ANIMATO MA NON ALLEGRO – ALLEGRETTO LEGGRETTO E SCHERZANDO – ANDANTE NON TROPPO

13 Alfred SCHNITTKE (1934-1998) – A Paganini (1982) – CHOI Ye-Eun

Piano: Dana PROTOPOPESCU (1-4), Eliane REYES (5-7), Thomas HOPPE (8-12)

5 Session Violin 2009

JURY 2009

Arie VAN LYSEBETH / CHAIRPERSON

Martin BEAVER Augustin DUMAY Daniel HOPE Yuzuko HORIGOME Lewis KAPLAN KIM Min Boris KUSCHNIR Jaime LAREDO Mihaela MARTIN Igor OISTRAKH Gérard POULET Vadim REPIN TSU Vera

Nicolas DERNONCOURT / SECRETARY

6 Biographies

Ray CHEN AUSTRALIA, 6/ 03/ 1989 Ray Chen began to play the violin in his homeland; later, at the age of 15, he was accepted into the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he worked with Aaron Rosand. He has also studied with David Cerone, Pamela Frank, and Joseph Silverstein. He gave his first concert at the age of eight with the Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra; the following year he was invited to play at the opening ceremony for the Winter Olympics in Japan. In 2008 he won first prize at the Yehudi Menuhin Competition; since then he has performed in a number of countries with various orchestras, including the Mariinsky Symphony Orchestra and the State Symphony Orchestra of Azerbaijan. Earlier this year he won first prize at the Young Concert Artists International Auditions in New York.

Lorenzo GATTO BELGIUM, 2/12/1986 Lorenzo Gatto studied at the Brussels Conservatoire and the Queen Elisabeth College of Music, with Véronique Bogaerts and Augustin Dumay, before going on to further studies at the Vienna Conservatory with Boris Kuschnir. He has won awards at a number of competitions, including first prize at the RNCM International Violin Competition (Manchester) in 2005 and the Andrea Postacchini Competition (Fermo, Italy) in 2003. At a very young age he was invited to perform at the Centre for Fine Arts (Brussels), the Queen Elisabeth Hall (Antwerp), the Salle Cortot (Paris), the Victoria Hall (Geneva), the Bridgewater Hall (Manchester), and at various European festivals. He has appeared with the BBC Philharmonic, deFilharmonie, and other orchestras in Belgium.

Ilian GÂRNET MOLDAVA, 23/11/1983 Ilian Gârnet studied in Moldova at the Chis¸ inaˇ u Academy under B. Dubosarsky, before pursuing further studies in Finland at the Sibelius Academy with A. Vinnitsky. Starting at the age of nine, he has won many prizes at national and international competitions; recently he has distinguished himself at the David Oistrakh Competition (fourth prize in 2006 and third prize in 2008) and the Tibor Varga Competition (first prize in 2008). He has performed in Romania, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Bulgaria, Germany, Spain, France, Austria, Finland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Kazakhstan and has played with a number of orchestras, including the Cluj, Istanbul, and Zurich Philharmonics.

7 KIM Suyoen KOREA, 12/11/1987 After studying in Helge Slaatto’s class at the Hochschule für Musik in Münster, where she was the school’s youngest student, Kim Suyoen continued her studies with Ana Chumachenko at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich. First Laureate in the Leopold Mozart Competition in Augsburg (2003) and the Hanover International Competition (2006), she has benefited from a number of scholarships in Germany. She has performed with many orchestras, including the Weimarer Staatskapelle, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, the Copenhagen, Baden- Baden, Strasbourg, St Petersburg, and Santiago Philharmonic Orchestras, the Seoul Symphony Orchestra, and the Munich Symphony Orchestra.

Nikita BORISOGLEBSKY RUSSIA, 30/08/1985 After completing his studies, under Eduard Grach, at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, Nikita Borisoglebsky went on to further studies at the Queen Elisabeth College of Music, starting in 2008, with Augustin Dumay. A laureate of several competitions, in 2007 he won first prize at the Oistrakh Competition and second prize at the Tchaikovsky Competition. He has appeared in recital at festivals in Russia, Germany, Switzerland, Croatia, Austria, and Italy and has performed with many Russian and European orchestras, including the Moscow Philharmonic, the Mariinsky Symphony Orchestra, the NDR Sinfonieorchester (Hanover), the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra (Poland), the New Russia Orchestra, and the State Symphony Orchestra of Russia.

YOON Soyoung KOREA, 28/10/1984 Yoon Soyoung studied at the National University of the Arts in Korea with Kim Nam-Yun, before pursuing her studies at the Hochschule für Musik in Cologne with Zakhar Bron. A laureate of various Korean competitions, she also distinguished herself between 2002 and 2007 at the Yehudi Menuhin, Tibor Varga, David Oistrakh, and Tchaikovsky international competitions, at which she won a number of prizes. She has performed in prestigious concert halls in Japan, Moscow, Tel Aviv, and Europe, with the Moscow Virtuosi Orchestra, the London Mozart Players, the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, the Basque National Orchestra, the Philharmonie der Nationen, and the Sinfonieorchester des Westdeutschen Rundfunks. .

8 LAUREATES not-classed

Noah BENDIX-BALGLEY UNITED STATES, 15/07/1984

CHEN Jiafeng CHINA, 13/04/1987

CHOI Ye-Eun KOREA, 13/02/1988

Mayu KISHIMA JAPAN, 13/12/1986

PARK Ji-Yoon KOREA, 16/12/1985

Vineta SAREIKA LETLAND, 1/03/1986

9 ORCHESTRE ROYAL DE CHAMBRE DE WALLONIE Heir to a great musical tradition, the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie was founded in 1958 by Lola Bobesco. It has been led by conductors from that tradition, as well as by those of the new generation, such as Robin Ticciati and Jérémie Rohrer. The last chamber music orchestra in Belgium, it has accompanied great musicians and singers, including J. Van Dam, M. Rostropovitch, A. Ciccolini, M. Maisky, M. André, A. Grumiaux, J.-P. Rampal, P. Tortelier, P. Hirschhorn, G. Octors, J. Starker, F. Braley, J.-B. Pommier, M. Béroff, G. Kremer, L. Lortie, J. Wang, and M. J. Pires. Since 2003 the orchestra has benefited from the dynamism and renown of its musical director and principal conductor, Augustin Dumay, whose mandate lasts until 2013. The orchestra is a regular partner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition, the Queen Elisabeth College of Music, the Festival de Wallonie, and Bozar. Directed from the violin by its leader (concertmaster), J.-F. Chamberlan, the ORCW performs regularly in Belgium and particularly for Belgium’s French-speaking Community. In Mons, its city of residence, the orchestra and the Royal Conservatory of Mons organise the summer festival ‘Côté Cour, Côté Jardin’, which enables young talents to blossom. The orchestra is supported by public institutions: the Ministry of the French-speaking Community, the General Commission for International Relations, the Wallonia Foreign Trade and Investment Agency (AWEX), the National Lottery, and the City of Mons.

PAUL GOODWIN Paul Goodwin began his musical career as an oboist and contemporary music specialist, before turning to period instruments, in which field he was recognised as one of the leading Baroque oboists in the world. This breadth of musical interest is highlighted by his conducting career over the last decade, which spans from Monteverdi to Maxwell Davies, working with both early instruments and modern orchestras. Goodwin brings his philosophy of historically informed performance to the opera house, with Haendel, Mozart and Gluck; and to concert halls with Bach, Schumann, Britten and Elgar. His love of contemporary music has lead him to commission many new pieces by such composers as J. Tavener, J. Woolrich, T. Musgrave, and D. Bedford. Paul Goodwin was appointed Associate Conductor of the Academy of Ancient Music in 1996; and then went on to become principal guest conductor of the English Chamber Orchestra, and one of the principal guest conductors of the Kammerorchester Basel and the SWR Rundfunkorchester Kaiserslautern. Paul’s dedication to educational projects has led him to work with both the National Youth Orchestras of The Netherlands and Spain, the Britten-Pears Orchestra, the European Union Baroque Orchestra and with the orchestras of the Royal College and Royal Academy of Music, London, and the Royal Conservatoire in the Hague. He was awarded the Haendel Honorary Prize of the City of Halle (Saale) in 2007 in recognition of his extraordinary services to performances of works by Haendel.

10 NATIONAL ORCHESTRA OF BELGIUM Since it was founded in 1936 the NOB has made musical history with renowned conductors and with celebrated soloists and composers. As it entered the 21st century the orchestra expanded its horizons, exploring film music and developing projects for children and young people. Its annual commissions of work from Belgian composers have enabled the NOB to keep its finger on the pulse of musical life and contribute to the emergence of tomorrow’s masterpieces. The NOB opted, from the 2007-2008 season, for the maturity and experience of Walter Weller. Together with the NOB, Weller has been reviewing the great European repertoire, while also regularly reviving forgotten symphonic gems. In the choice of guest soloists and conductors there is a striking balance between renowned performers and vigorous new talent – the latter thanks, in part, to an excellent relationship with the Queen Elisabeth Competition. The NOB remains a valued guest at the Brussels Centre for Fine Arts, where it presents a variety of concert series. The orchestra also performs in all the provinces of Belgium, for the country’s three Communities. Internationally, too, the NOB has built up a solid reputation. Its CD releases on Fuga Libera have been well received worldwide and in recent years they successfully toured in Japan, Switzerland, Germany and Spain.

GILBERT VARGA Gilbert Varga has been appointed guest conductor at many of the major orchestras throughout the world. In the earlier part of his career, he mainly worked with chamber orchestras, and more particularly with the Tibor Varga Chamber Orchestra, before rapidly developing a reputation as a symphonic conductor. Varga was appointed Chief Conductor at the Hofer Symphoniker from 1980 to 1985, and at the Philharmonia Hungarica in Marl from 1985 to 1990, conducting their debut tour in Hungary with Yehudi Menuhin. From 1991 to 1995 he was Permanent Guest Conductor at the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra and from 1997 until 2000 Principal Guest at the Malmö Symfoniorkester. Varga has conducted many of Europe’s major orchestras, including the Munich Philharmonic, the Rotterdam Philharmonic, the Orchestre de Paris, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, the Oslo Philharmonic, and the Hallé Orchestra. Most recently, he has worked with the Bayerische Staatsoper Orchester, the Orchestra of Santa Cecilia, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the National Orchestra of Belgium, the RAI, and the Gothenburg Symphony. Since 2002, he is regularly invited in North America to conduct the orchestras of Minnesota, Philadelphia, Dallas, Detroit, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, St Louis and Atlanta. Varga’s discography includes recordings with ASV, Discover Records, Tring, Koch International, and Claves Recordings.