XIV Tchaikovsky Competition to open in Moscow Tuesday.

MOSCOW, June 14 (Itar-Tass) - The XIV Tchaikovsky Competition opens
here on Tuesday. It will continue until July 2. For the first-ever time,
Competition events will take place not only in the capital but in St
Petersburg as well.
The opening ceremony will be held on Tuesday evening in the renovated
Grand Hall of the (Moscow) Conservatoire (GHC). Playing at the ceremony
will be the laureates of past years: Vladimir Spivakov (1970), Denis
Matsuyev (1998) and Albina Shagimuratova (2007). Their performance will be
accompanied by the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia under the
baton of maestro Spivakov. Star performers will play works by Tchaikovsky,
Shostakovich, Bizet, Gounod, Verdi, Donizetti, and Mascagni.
Competitive auditions in Moscow will begin on June 15 and those in St
Petersburg on June 16. All the three rounds of the competition among
pianists will be held in the GHC.
Cellists will demosntrate their performing skills in the Smaller Hall
of the Moscow Conservatoire and the Tvchaikovsky Hall. Violin playing
auditions are to be held in St Petersburg Conservatoire and the city's
Philharmonic Society while vocalists will compete in the State Academic
Capella and on the stage of the Maryinsky Theatre.
The uniqueness of the Tchaikosky Compeitiotn this year is the
opportunity for Internet users to watch it as well. The third round, the
most improtant one, will be broadcast online via the Internet. Actually,
the entire music-loving community will be judges and watchers.
The Tchaikonsky Competition has drawn musicians from 29 countries: 30
piano players, 27 violinists, 25 cellists, 20 female singers and 20 male
ones.
Valery Gergiyev, artistic director of the Competition, said, "Even in
our boldest expectations we could not imagine that applications for
participation will be filed from 50 countries and that, in result. we
shall select more than 100 musicians from 29 countries." He did an immense
amount of work to prove it to the young talents that the Competition would
be an impartial one.
"I am pleased very much that I have succeeded in achieving that, for
musicians whose names are on the list of participants did not believe that
that was possible," Gergiyev added.
Van Cliburn will head the piano jury. It was precisely this Amertican
piano player who scored a sensational victory at the First Tchaikovsky
Competition in 1958. The piano jury also includes the laureates of the
first Competition Vladimir Ashkenazi and Barry Douglas (Britain), Mikhail
Voskresensky and Denis Matsuyev.
Together with Placido Domingo, the performing skills of vocalists will
be judged by Teresa Berganza, Yelena Obraztsova, Renata Scotto, Ferruccio
Furlanetto, as well as other renowned performers.
Among the violin jury will are Anne-Sophie Mutter (Germany), Leonidas
Kavakos (Greece), Maxim Vengeroff, Nikolai Tsnaider, Viktor Tretyakov, and
Sergei Stadler.
The cello jury includes Mario Brunello (Italy), Clive Gillinson,
executive and artistic director of the New York Carngie Hall, Lynn Harrell
(US) and other world-known performers.
On July 1, the GHC will play host to a concert to be given by
laureates of the Competition and the Maryinsky Theatre will host them on
the next day. Winners will perform together with maestro Valery Gergiyev
who is heading the organizing committee of the Tchaikovsky Competition
this year, and the Symphony Orchestra of the Maryinsky Theatre.
Three-year engagements will be arranged for the young talents by the
leading concert agencies of Russia, Britain, and the United States.
The first prize will amount to 20,000 euros. The overall prize fund
of the Competition is about 350,000 euros. The Competition is financed by
the government of the Russian Federation. Sponsors' resources from inside
and outside Russia are invited to ensure the conduct of additional events
and TV and web broadcasting.