Pianist Zoltán Fejérvári, 30, from Hungary has won the $80,000 first prize at the 2017 Montreal International Musical Competition. The announcement was made by jury president André Bourbeau late Wednesday evening, May 10, at La Maison symphonique de Montréal following two evenings of concerto performances with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra under guest conductor Claus Peter Flor.
Fejérvári played Bartók's Piano Concerto No. 3 in the finals, and in the earlier solo rounds he distinguished himself playing works by Janáček, Scriabin, Beethoven and Bach.
Watch Fejérvari's final-round performance below:
Second prize ($15,000) was awarded to Giuseppe Guarrera, 25, from Italy; the $10,000 third prize went to another 25-year-old Italian, Stefano Andreatta. The three unranked finalists, each of whom receives a $2,000 grant, are Albert Cano-Smit (20, Spain/the Netherlands), Yejin Noh (30, South Kora), and Junhyung Park (21, South Korea).
The winners were selected by an international jury comprising Idil Biret (Turkey), Dang Thai Son (Canada/Vietnam), Alain Lefèvre (Canada), Hélène Mercier (Canada), Pedja Muzijevic (Bosnia), David Owen Norris (U.K.), Cristina Ortiz (Brazil), R. Douglas Sheldon (U.S.), Gabriel Tacchino (France) and Bourbeau (Canada, jury chair).
The first prize winner will perform with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra at a gala concert to be held Friday, May 12, at 7:30 p.m. at La Maison symphonique de Montréal. At that time, the following special prizes will be awarded:
- Award for best Canadian artist: $5,000.
- Radio-Canada People's Choice Award: $5,000.
- André-Bachand Award for outstanding performance of the compulsory Canadian work in the semifinals: $4,000.
- Award for the best semifinal recital: $2,000.
- Bach Award for outstanding performance of a work for solo keyboard by J.S. Bach: $1,000.
- Chopin Award for outstanding performance of a work for solo piano by F. Chopin: $1,000.
3 top prize winners at the 2017 Montreal International Musical Competition, from left to right: Stefano Andreatta (3rd), Zoltán Fejérvári (1st) and Giuseppe Guarrera (2nd). (Brent Calis)
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