16 compositions shortlisted by the jury
The preliminary jury of this year's competition for composers has selected 16 works - including a Hungarian piece - for the international jury, chaired by the world-famous British composer Thomas Adès.
There were many pieces written with excellent instrumental technique, but with different styles and compositional techniques," said Gyula Fekete, composer, vice-rector of the Liszt Academy, artistic director of the composers' round of the competition. The other members of the preliminary jury were composers Máté Bella, Balázs D. Kecskés and Péter Tornyai, and pianist Péter Kis, all of whom are teachers at the Liszt Academy. The pre-jury received the scores of the entries and the accompanying audio material, as well as a rogram notes of the piece anonymously via an electronic link.
By the August deadline, 155 entries had been received from 37 countries. One applicant was allowed to submit more than one piece, so three entered with two or three compositions and one with four. Of the applicants, 25 were women and 123 men, the youngest being 10 years old. The largest number of applicants came from Korea, China and Russia.
The prize-winning works will be performed at a Gala Concert in the Solti Hall of the Liszt Academy on 23 November 2024, featuring pianist József Balog, who will also perform Bartók pieces.
One or two of the winning or commended compositions will be selected for the repertoire of the 2025 Bartók World Competition for Pianists. The first prize is worth €5,000, the second €3,000 and the third €2,000, thanks to the support of the Hungarian Government.