38th EDITION OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION FOR VIOLIN AND ORCHESTRA
ORGANIZED BYVALSESIA MUSIC CULTURAL ASSOCIATION:
AWARD GIVING OF THE WINNERS OF THE VIOLIN AND ORCHESTRA COMPETITION
AND AWARD GIVING OF THE WINNERS OF THE 23rd JUNIOR COMPETITION, MONTEROSA KAWAI AWARD 2022
Thursday 8th December was a great night for the final of the 38th Valsesia Musica International Competition 2022 for Violin and Orchestraat the Civic Theater of Varallo.
After selections online fourteen violinists were chosen to support the face-to-face rehearsals, accompanied by pianists Camilla Marone Bianco and Georgi Trendafiloff. The 2022 edition was characterized, not only by a 50% increase in registrations compared to 2021, but above all by an extraordinary level of quality, such as to make the task of the jury called upon to choose the finalists who performed with the prestigious orchestra Antonio Vivaldiconducted by Maestro Ernesto Colombo, thrilling the audience with the performance of some of the most famous and well-known concerts for violin and orchestra.
The Competition Jury was chaired by Hubert Stuppner, composed by the Artistic Director of Valsesia MusicMaestro Vincenzo Balzani, by the violinist Lindita Hoxha and by Maestro Christian Anzinger, Austrian and Italian citizen, for a long time holder of the violin chair at the G. Verdi Conservatory of Milan, for whom: “The study of music and of an instrument is always a spiritual commitment; it’s not enough to just talk about technique or musicality, because the secrets of music reside in the depths of the soul, and there everything is to be discovered. Music is pure spirituality and here the real teaching begins”. While the jurors were meeting to draw up the ranking of the winners, the winners of the 23rd performed on stage Valsesia Musica Juniores International Competition, whose evidence online they had finished for a few days. The jury, chaired by the artistic director Maestro Vincenzo Balzani, had selected the sixteen-year-old Japanese as the absolute winners among the pianists Riona Abe and the eighteen year old from Genoa Claudia Ventothe eighteen-year-old oboist among the wind instruments Flame of Gennaro, accompanied on the piano by his brother Jacopo. In addition to the three absolute winners, the young violinists were also awarded: Francesco Dordoni and Alice Migliore.
Before proceeding to the awards ceremony, the President of the Jury, Hubert Stuppner, who was for many years President of the Jury of the famous Ferruccio Busoni international piano competitionwhich takes place in Bolzano, open to participants from all over the world, underlined that it is important for young musicians to participate in competitions, because judgments always help to improve.
This year’s winner, Italian Teofil Milenkovic, twenty-two years old, who won the first prize offered by Pierluigi, Lucia and Luisa Loro Piana in memory of their mother Elena Nathan, the unforgettable and irreplaceable patron of Valsesiana, who cared so much about the competition, presented himself in Varallo for the twelfth time ( since when he was only 8 years old he defeated the field of the junior competition).
The ex aequo second prize was divided between Zhixin Zhang, a twenty-two year old Chinese, and Leonard Toschev, a seventeen year old German violinist of Bulgarian origin.
In addition to the three winners, special prizes were awarded: the President of theInner Wheel Club of ValsesiaFiorella Di Marco Proietti, awarded the most promising violinist, the American, of Japanese origin, Miray Ito, Marinella Mazzone Turcotti, in memory of her husband Giovanni Turcotti, awarded a prize to the youngest violinist in the competition: the fifteen-year-old Davide Cretarola from Rome.
The event avails itself of the support of the Piedmont Region, represented by the Councilor Carlo Riva Vercellotti, of the Province of Vercelli, with the Provincial Councilor Cristina Patrosso, and of theMountain Union of Municipalities of Valsesia with the presence of Attilio Ferla, Councilor for Culture. Enrica Poletti, Councilor for Culture of the City of Varallo, but also Vice President of Valsesia Music, represented the President, Franca Scaglia, who was not present for health reasons. Fundamental to the continuation of the Competition is the contribution of the Banking Foundations: Cassa di Risparmio di Vercelli Foundation, Cassa di Risparmio di Torino Foundation and Banca Popolare di Novara Foundation for the area, and the important partner Daikin Air Conditioning Italy.
For those wishing to support the Association, especially in these difficult times, we remind you that it is possible to join the “Friends of Valsesia Musica” by contacting the association on 347.8317568 (also whatsapp) or by writing to info@valsesiamusica.com
At the end of this memorable edition of the Competition, the Regional Councilor Carlo Riva Vercellotti talked about Valsesia Music as of the “pearl of Valsesia” to be preserved and supported because it promotes music, encourages young talents and offers free quality concerts to citizens.