The Intercollegiate Piano Competition of Jaques Samuel Pianos
The Competition
• has taken place annually since 1996
Since 2006 it was my responsibility to organise it.
• is open to piano students of London's four main music academies
(Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance)
• is sponsored
Locations:
Heats: at Jaques Samuel Pianos.
Semi-Final: at St. James's Church Piccadilly, known for their regular lunchtime and evening concerts.
Final: at Wigmore Hall, a well-known concert venue in London. During the last four years the final was streamed live on youtube.
Prize
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A solo recital at Wigmore Hall and at the Fazioli Auditorium, Sacile, Italy
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500 professionally produced CDs.
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Two of the winners also appeared on BBC Radio 3 – In Tune.
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Four entrants play a solo lunchtime recital at St James's Piccadilly.
Adjudicators
The adjudicators are piano professors from the music academies, but also the sponsors, a pianist of name and the director of Wigmore Hall.
The Final 2016
(the whole final at Wigmore Hall on youtube)
Oda Voltersvik
Finalist 2016
Impressions of two annual events I organised during the last years
The Junior Department Piano Festival of Jaques Samuel Pianos
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The piano festival took place from 2007 to 2015.
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It was open to students from the junior departments of London's main music academies (Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance).
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The participating students ( 8 to 17 years old) all played in front of one or two adjudicators on the festival day.
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Up to 20 were then selected to perform in a lunchtime concert at Wigmore Hall.
The pictures are taken from a documentary that was filmed on December 9th 2012 by pianist and author Melanie Spanswick.