XI Darmstadt International Chopin Piano Competition 6 - 16 October 2017

A reproduction of a fragment of a picture depicting Chopin painted by
Ludomir Sleńdziński (1951?) 

Since 1983 the Chopin-Gesellschaft in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland e.V. has been organizing Chopin piano competitions in Darmstadt which take place every  three or four years and which have in the meantime acquired the status of a high-ranking international event. Through the Chopin Competitions the Chopin-Gesellschaft wishes to honour Chopin and his music, to further young talent and to never cease searching for ways leading to the best interpretation of Chopin's music.

The competition consists of 3 rounds, the final round with orchestra. The age limit is 30 years. New in 2017 is the opportunity for improvisation in round one and the inclusion of a work by Chopin for piano and cello in the final round.

Since 2009 (with 130 applicants from 30 countries) the Chopin Piano Competition in Darmstadt is regarded by experts as being the most prestigious Chopin Competition after Warsaw:

"... as an international competition specializing in the works of Chopin there are few, if any, other competitions in the world which could be considered more important, except of course the Warsaw Competition itself..." (Kevin Kenner, winner of the prestigious Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1990)

"The Chopin International Piano Competition in Darmstadt takes a special place in the Music World. It is the most significant one next to the famous competition in Warsaw." (Gustav Alink, 2013, founder of the Alink-Argerich Foundation, offering independent information and support for pianists and competition organisers worldwide.)

The competition receives its primary financial funding from the city of Darmstadt, the Sparkassenkulturstiftung of Hesse-Thuringia and the State of Hesse, to which the Chopin Society is profoundly indebted for the continued success of this event.

Luisenplatz Darmstadt

I shall be travelling to Darmstadt on October 5th to cover this event in detail as the official reviewer in the English language

Link to 'The Reviewer's Notepad' (my daily evaluation of the competition)

https://michael-moran.org/2017/09/24/xi-darmstadt-international-chopin-piano-competition-2017-6-16-october-2017/

Competition Website

http://www.chopin-gesellschaft.de/index.html