The 2nd Karol Szymanowski International Music Competition has just passed into history. Nineteen days filled with intense competition emotions, more than seventy-five hours of music and dozens of final rehearsals with the orchestra are behind us. The contestants delighted the international jury with their interpretations. All of them are still available in audio form on the SoundCloud platform. Broadcasts of the final auditions can also be watched on the official channel of the competition's YouTube platform.
Among the winners of the first prize were as many as two participants from Japan - Kaho Araishi and Seina Matsuoka, on the podium were also Poles who dominated the singing category - first place went to Magdalena Lucjan, and second place to Jan Żądło, second place in the piano category went to Krzysztof Wierciński, third place in the violin category went to Jakub Staszel, and third prize in the string quartet category went to the Neuma Quartet ensemble. The participant with the most prizes was pianist Gaspard Thomas, who was awarded third place, received a special prize for his interpretations of works by Karol Szymanowski, and an honorable mention for the best interpretation of a contemporary work awarded in the composition competition.
Winners of the 2nd Karol Szymanowski International Music Competition 2023
Piano:
1st prize – Kaho Araishi
2nd prize – Krzysztof Wierciński
3rd prize – Gaspard Thomas
Special award for interpretations of works by Karol Szymanowski - Gaspard Thomas
Honorable mention for the best interpretation of a contemporary piece awarded in a composition competition - Gaspard Thomas
Honorable mentions - Daniel Aulak, Michal Basista, Lily Phee
Violin:
1st prize — Seina Matsuoka
2nd prize — Elvin Hoxha Ganiyev
3rd prize — Jakub Staszel
Special award for the best performance of a piece by Karol Szymanowski - Maya Wichert.
Special award for the best performance of a contemporary piece awarded in the composition competition - Seina Matsuoka
Honorable mention for the outstanding participant of the second stage - Sara Dragan
Award for the best chamber pianist (in the violin category) - Yuto Kiguchi
String quartet:
1st prize - not granted
2nd prize - Turicum Quartet
3rd prize — Neuma Quartet
Best interpretation of a quartet by Karol Szymanowski - Neuma Quartet.
Special award for the best performance of a contemporary piece awarded in a composition competition - Quiron Quartet and Monbijou Quartet.
Voice:
1st prize - Magdalena Lucjan
2nd prize - Jan Żądło
3rd prize - not granted
Special award for the best performance of a piece by Karol Szymanowski - Jan Żądło
Special award for the best performance of a contemporary piece awarded in a composition competition -Monika Radecka
Award for the best chamber pianist (in the voice category) - Grzegorz Biegas
Winners of the 2nd Karol Szymanowski International Music Competition in the composition category:
Compositions for piano
1st prize - Pablo Borrás
2nd prize - not granted
3rd prize - Hyunsu Kim
Distinctions: Bartosz Witkowski i Michał Janocha
Violin compositions:
1st prize - Amer Ali
2nd prize - Jinwook Jung
3rd prize - Manolis Ekmektsoglou
Distinctions: Andrea Nassivera i Pasquale Punzo
Voice compositions:
1st prize – Noemi Conti
2nd prize – Alejandro Mata
3rd prize – Krystian Neścior
String quartet compositions:
1st prize – Maria Vincenza Cabizza
2nd prize – Hed Bahack
3rd prize – Hyunsu Kim
Distinctions – Dario Michelon i Andrea Mattevi
Organized by the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice, the Competition would not have taken place without the tremendous support of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the City of Katowice, the K. Szymanowski Music Academy in Katowice and the K. Szymanowski Music Society in Zakopane, as well as Polish Radio Program 2. The strategic partner of the Competition was again the Polish Music Publishing House, and the media partner was the Polish Artistic Information Center. The technological partner of this year's competition was the YouTube platform, owned by the Google brand, while the automotive partner was BMW Gazda.
See you at the 3rd edition of the Karol Szymanowski International Music Competition in Katowice in September 2027!