Final round in KEW semi-final
The presence of Queen Matilde in the front row of the concert hall greatly motivated the participants to give their best. The cheerful attitude of the Queen inspired the hosts in their tribute to the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie and to express their gratitude. During the intermission, the Queen, patron of the Queen Elisabeth Competition, came to the stage to greet the conductor and the orchestra. Composer Harold Noben, who was present in the audience, was officially congratulated for his special contribution with the piece Caffeine, created by commission for this KEW edition.
programme
Anton Kraft – Concerto in C op. 4
Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie, dir. Vahan Mardirossian
The tone quality that Marcus Michelin manages to create stands out from the very first moment the cello bow touches the strings. Perfect coordination lets him shine. With this classical Kraft concerto, which is both substantively well-founded and aesthetically perfect, he delivers a stylish performance worthy of such a grand day.
programme
Leopold Hofmann – Concerto in D Badley D3
Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie, dir. Vahan Mardirossian
A subtle, sensitive touch, a soft, whispering cello sound that sometimes even shows baroque traits and a cheerful approach to the Hoffman concerto. She is introspective, she almost dances during her performance and we don't know where her mysterious choreography comes from. It is striking to realize that she is still at the beginning of her development. You cannot help but reflect and wonder what heights she will still reach.
programme
Claude Debussy - Sonata in d
Anton von Webern - Drei kleine Stücke op. 11
Harold Noben – Caffeine
Mily Balakirev - Romance
Pjotr Tsjaikovski - Pezzo capriccioso op. 62
Katsura Mizumoto, piano accompaniment
Michael Song is completely immersed in thought and cello playing. As noted before, this leads to a lack of communication, giving the impression of an inner struggle while exploring new possibilities, as a continuation of his studies. His natural manual dexterity serves him well in shaping the left hand and bow technique, whereby we see a particularly technical ingenuity in this candidate.
programme
Harold Noben – Caffeine
Witold Lutoslawski - Sacher Variatie for cello solo
Johannes Brahms - Sonata n. 1 in e op. 38
Boris Kusnezow, piano accompaniment
A radiant musical interpretation that captures all the nuances of this repertoire: the dramatic intensity of the crisis in Noben's composition, the whimsical technical virtuosity in the Variations, the tenderness of the late-Romantic sonata – an artistic high point that deserves honor on this royal evening.
Finalists (order of appearance)
Maria Zaitseva
Lionel Martin
Yo Kitamura
Ivan Sendetsky
Krzysztof Michalski
Clara Dietlin
Ettore Pagano
Dilshod Narzillaev
Álvaro Lozano Cames
Leland Ko
Andrew Ilhoon Byun
Tae-Yeon Kim