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Learning is not only fun, it's entertainment at the Young Pianist's Beethoven Competition, presented on April 10 by the Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies and the College of Humanities and the Arts at San José State University.
Everyone--both the audience and young musicians--gets to watch and learn something at this event, which features a competition between some of the best young pianists in California in the morning, followed by a master class for three competition winners in the afternoon.
The contest is open to all California residents who are attending high school as a freshman or sophomore. Six young pianists will perform at the Saturday morning competition, having been chosen by a committee from a preliminary contest. The public is invited to attend both the finalists' competition and the master class.
Competitors who earn one of three top spots (there are no ranks of first, second or third) receive a cash prize of $200 each, as well as an invaluable honor: the chance to take part in a master class led by an internationally renowned musician. In past years, the competition master class has been taught by such artists and respected teachers as Richard Goode, Garrick Ohlsson, Seymour Lipkin and Jörg Demus, who taught at the first competition 17 years ago. This year, award-winning pianist Anton Kuerti will lead the master class.
Classical fans have likely heard at least one Kuerti performance, as he is one of the most-recorded musicians today. His discography includes, among many other compositions, all the Beethoven Concertos and Sonatas, the Schubert Sonatas and the Brahms Concertos.
He has toured around the world and performed in 39 countries and has performed with such names as Janos Starker and Yo-Yo Ma, as well as with the Guarneri, St. Lawrence and Tokyo String Quartets, to name just a few.
The master class offers audiences an up-close look at--as the name implies--a master at work, instructing students in technique and performance. But those who can't wait can catch Kuerti in performance a day earlier, when he presents an all-Beethoven program April 9 at the San José State University Concert Hall, in a concert sure to inspire listeners and students alike.
The center, which is the only institution in North America solely devoted to the study of composer Ludwig van Beethoven, boasts the most extensive collection of Beethoven materials outside of Europe.
Anton Kuerti performs April 9, 8 p.m., at the San Jose State University Concert Hall. Tickets are $25 general/$20 seniors/$10 students. The competition takes place April 10, 9:30 a.m.noon (tickets are $3 general/$2 students) and the master class is held April 10, 24 p.m. (tickets are $6 general/$3 students). For more information, call 408.808.2058.
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