Finalists named for Van Cliburn International Piano Competition

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Six pianists, ages 19 to 27, have been named today as finalists for the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.

They are Evgeni Bozhanov, 25, of Bulgaria; Yeol Eum Son, 23, of South Korea; Nobuyuki Tsujii, 20, of Japan; Mariangela Vacatello, 27, of Italy; Di Wu, 24, of China; and Haochen Zhang, 19, also of China.

The winner will be determined after a series of concerts scheduled for Wednesday through Sunday. Each pianist will perform two concertos with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Los Angeles Opera music director James Conlon.

Each concert will be webcast live on the competition’s official site, www.cliburn.tv. The site features streaming video of rehearsals and other events from Fort Worth, as well as a blog and a Twitter feed.

Viewers also can cast their votes online for their favorite performer, although the outcome won’t affect the jury’s decision for the ultimate winner.

Among the finalists, Japan’s Tsujii (pictured above) has garnered the most media attention since the competition began. Blind from birth, he made his Carnegie Hall recital debut at age 12 and has since performed with major symphony orchestras all over the world.

The Van Cliburn competition started last week with 29 pianists from 14 countries, narrowed from a selection of more than 150 individuals who had auditioned around the world. Held every four years in Fort Worth, the competition is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious prizes in the world of classical piano.

-- David Ng