The 23rd edition of the Iturbi Prize, organized by the Diputació de València, now has its finalists. Eugenia Sánchez Durán, Emin Kiourktchian, Yungyung Guo, Ruggiero Fiorella, Nabeel Hayek, and Uladzislau Khandohi will compete for a place in the Grand Final of the competition. The Provincial Councillor for Culture, Paco Teruel, underlined “the impressive level of the participants, which makes the Iturbi a great competition, as the Chairman of the Jury and one of the piano greats, Joaquín Achúcarro, rightly says”.
Out of 20 contestants, these six young talents qualified in the first round of the competition, together with Yifan Wu, Danylo Saienko, Natalie Schwamova and Arsen Dalibaltayan, who did not make it past the semi-finals held over the weekend. In the final, which will take place on Tuesday 10 and Wednesday 11 June in the Iturbi Hall of the Palau de la Música (6 pm), each of the finalists will perform a Beethoven concerto for piano and orchestra with the Orquesta de València, conducted by Guillermo García Calvo. The best three will go on to the Grand Final on Friday 13 June (7 pm) in the same Iturbi Hall.
Both the final and the Grand Final can be followed in person, with free admission until full capacity is reached, or by streaming on the Provincial Council of Valencia’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNp6H8NGxwCAUIfOVtATWnB_TUevd7ehN.
The same is true of the closing gala, which will be held on Saturday 14 June at the Teatro Principal (7:30 pm), for which tickets must be booked in advance at www.servientradas.com. Representing the jury, Joaquín Achúcarro emphasised “the high level of the contestants” and confessed that “the unanimity of the judging criteria has caused surprise, and at the same time joy, among the members of this jury”.
The six finalists
Eugenia Sánchez Durán (Murcia 2004) studies with Professor Leo de María and maestro Leonel Morales at the Alfonso X el Sabio University in Madrid. She has excelled in international competitions such as Las Rozas, Salzburg and Épinal, taking fourth prize in the latter in this year’s edition; and has performed in important halls such as the Max-Schlereth Saal and the Solitär Hall in Salzburg; the Carnegie Hall in New York (USA); the Shenzhen Concert Hall (China); the Slovak Philharmonic; and the Théâtre de La Rotonde (France).
Emin Kiourktchian (Cordoba 2004) began his career at the age of six with his mother, the pianist Larisa Tedtoeva. In April 2021, he won the City of Albacete National Competition for Young Pianists and was admitted to study at the Escuela Reina Sofía in Madrid with Professor Milana Chernyavska. He has received master classes from renowned pianists such as Leonskaja, Shereshvskaya, Berman, Ovchinnikov and Martínez Mehner. His recent successes include first prize at the Frechilla-Zuloaga Competition in Valladolid (November 2023), and third prize at the City of Malaga International Competition (June 2024).
Yungyung Guo (Hong Kong 2003) has performed at such venues as the Sydney Opera House and the Shanghai Symphony Auditorium, and with such orchestras as the Sydney Symphony, the Mexico City Philharmonic and the Shanghai Philharmonic, working with conductors including Benjamin Northey, Umberto Clerici and Scott Yoo. As a chamber musician, she has performed with cellist Li-Wei Qin. Yungyung was third in the Sydney International Piano Competition, first in the Gurwitz International Piano Competition and second in the New Orleans International Piano Competition.
Ruggiero Fiorella (Puglia 2002) studies with Pavel Gililov at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, and with Eliso Virsaladze. He began piano studies at the age of seven, later graduating from the Florence Conservatory. He then obtained a Master’s Degree at the Mozarteum, in the class of Claudius Tanski, and was also tutored by Riccardo Risaliti in Italy. He performs regularly in halls all over Europe and has received awards in competitions such as Fvg 2024 (second prize) and Venezia 2022 (third prize). Since 2017, he has been a member of Trio ad Libitum, the 2021 winner of the Italian National Prize for the Arts.
Uladzislau Khandohi (Minsk 2001) comes from a family of musicians famous for their mastery of the dulcimer. He started piano lessons at the age of seven and soon gained recognition. At just ten, he won the Grand Prix at the Mendzelevskaya Open Competition in Mogilev, a year later he triumphed at the Sviridov in St Petersburg, and in 2014 he won first prize at the Astana Piano Passion Festival. He achieved worldwide recognition in 2016, becoming a finalist in the Gina Bachauer Competition and releasing his debut album with Melodiya. In 2020, he enrolled at the Moscow State Conservatory, subsequently winning prestigious competitions such as those held in Ferrol and Sanremo. He was a finalist in the Cliburn Piano Competition in 2022 and won second prize in Sydney in 2023.
Nabeel Hayek (Nazareth 2001) is a graduate of the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, where he studied with Arie Vardi and Asaf Zohar, and holds a master’s degree from the Juilliard School with Julian Martin. Since 2017, Hayek has been mentored by Murray Perahia. Looking ahead, he will continue his studies for a PhD in Musical Arts at Juilliard. Nabeel is an active chamber musician and collaborative pianist with extensive experience, and continues to expand his solo repertoire with a passion for contemporary and 20th century music. Hayek has given recitals in Europe, Asia and North America, and has performed for the Arthur Rubinstein International Music Society and the Israel Philharmonic.
The prizes
The winner of the Iturbi Competition will receive €30,000, the recording of a CD and participation in a concert tour; and the second and third place winners will receive €20,000 and €10,000 respectively and participation in the tour with the winner. The three pianists who fall just short of the Grand Final will receive €5,000 each, and the best of them will receive an additional €3,000. There are also special prizes awarded by the Provincial Council of Valencia itself and by collaborators such as the Philharmonic Society of Valencia and Kawai. These prizes will recognise the best performance of Spanish music, a piece by Chopin, a Mozart sonata and a Beethoven concerto. Finally, the best contestant chosen by the public will receive €2,000 from Clemente Pianos.
