In Tuesday’s (11/9) Toronto Star, Jon Terauds writes, “Over the past week, Toronto witnessed how the classical music business is as globalized as any other enterprise in the 21st century. Our concert halls brim with the finest talents the world has to offer, but the city has sat on the sidelines of the international music competition circuit. That all changed when the Canadian Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Toronto decided it was time to put us on the international map with its first piano competition, which concluded at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Koerner Hall on Monday night. The first-prize winner, out of 21 contestants chosen from more than 100 video applications, was a boyish 20-year-old Chinese pianist, Jiayan Sun, who is currently perfecting his art in New York City. … In taking away a $15,000 (U.S.) cash prize, as well as a future engagement with the Brantford Symphony Orchestra, Sun showed all the pluck and promise of a young talent to watch. The second and third prizes went to older, more experienced pianists: 27-year-old Ukrainian Kyrill Zvegintsov, currently studying in Switzerland, accepted a second-place cheque of $8,000 (U.S.); 32-year-old Georgian Vakhtang Kodanashvili took $5,000 (U.S.) home with him to South Bend, Indiana.”
Posted November 9, 2010
