Like the Olympics, the Van Cliburn boasts international interest and only takes place every four years.
Van Cliburn Piano Competition Returns to Fort Worth's Bass Performance Hall
By Catherine Adcock, Deputy Editor
The results are in, and 26-year-old UkrainianbrVadym Kholodenko took home the top prize — the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass GoldbrMedal and Van Cliburn Winner's Cup, plus $50,000 and three years of managementbrand concert bookings — at this year's Van Cliburn International PianobrCompetition, which ended June 9. Like the Olympics, this competition boastsbrinternational interest, worldwide laudations and only takes place every fourbryears. Unlike the Olympics, you never have to travel far to watch the world'sbrbest in classical pianists compete for a chance at glory, acclaim and prizesbrvalued at nearly $1.5 million.
Thebrcompetition began in 1962 to honor the cultural contributions of a youngbrvirtuoso-turned-rockstar classical pianist famous the world over. At the age ofbr23, Van Cliburn, a Kilgore native who later called Fort Worth home, surprisedbrthe world by winning the first annual Tchaikovsky International Competition inbrMoscow. That year in 1958, during the height of the Cold War, Time magazine called Cliburn “the Texanbrwho conquered Russia” on its cover. The handsome, all-American wonder frombrTexas began travelling the world to perform for heads of state, dignitaries andbrcelebrities. He appeared on The TonightbrShow and eventually garnered a fame that by all accounts rivaled that ofbrcontemporary Elvis Presley. For all his talent and all his acclaim, Van Cliburnbrwas perhaps most noted for retaining the down-to-earth goodness and home-groundbrkindness of a true Texan.
In the fallbrof the year Cliburn won the Tchaikovsky Competition, Irl Allison, founder ofbrthe National Guild of Piano Teachers, announced that he would offer a $10,000brfirst prize to the winner of a competition named for Cliburn while at a dinnerbrin Fort Worth. For the next three years, North Texas cultural figures,brpolitical leaders and locals worked tirelessly to create a world-class competitionbrin a city commonly known as Cowtown. In 1962, American Ralph Votapek won thebrfirst event, and since then, the finest young pianists from around the globebrhave been drawn to Fort Worth to participate in the world's preeminent pianobrcompetition every four years.
Those whobrparticipated in the event at Bass Hall were selected through a five-memberbrjury, which travels internationally to hear live performances from more thanbr130 applicants. From these auditions, 30 of the world's finest pianists werebrinvited to compete for the Cliburn medals, $175,000 in prizes and awards andbrthree years of commission-free career management valued at more than $1.3brmillion. The lucky virtuosos enjoyed local hospitality, boarding with familiesbrwho open up their homes to the guests. The world-renowned event proudly boastsbrthe same charm and hospitality Cliburn was known for. Up until his death thisbrpast February, Van Cliburn himself made a tradition of greeting eachbrcontestant, attending many of the performances and announcing the winners.
During thebrfirst week of June, the semi-finals and finals took place at Bass PerformancebrHall in Fort Worth, and the entire competition was streamed online frombrVan Cliburn (In 2009, more than 2 million unique visitors from 157 countriesbrstreamed video of the performances right into their homes.) Of the 45-minutebrsolo performances during preliminary rounds, 12 advanced to 60-minute recitalbrsemifinal rounds, which included a solo performance and a performance with thebrworld-renowned Brentano String Quartet. The final six pianists performed withbrthe Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.
Click here for a full list of winners.