Top Young Pianists In State Will Compete

Diana Shapiro, Michael Rector and Elena Abend, jurors for 2025 Wisconsin Youth Piano Competition.

When six Wisconsin professional musicians take the stage Friday, June 13, for the Creative Partners concert, audiences are in for a treat: they will hear a range of 20th century works by a Russian and Latin American composers, among others. But six members of the audience are likely to be especially attentive. They are semifinalists in the Wisconsin Youth Piano Competition, and will be listening to performances by the three competition jurors, all playing with their longtime duo partners.

The Wisconsin Youth Piano Competition, sponsored by the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and PianoArts of Wisconsin, showcases the talents of state pianists between the ages of 10 and 16. Selected from a larger group whose recordings were judged in the preliminary round, the six semifinalists were invited to Milwaukee for in-person competition June 15-16. The winner takes home a $1,000 cash prize and a booking to play at an MSO youth concert.

Creative Partners inaugurates the 2025 Youth Competition with performances by two piano duos and a clarinet/piano duo. Playing four-hand piano are juror Diana Shapiro with partner Stanislava Varshavski, and juror Michael Rector with partner Sylvia Hong. Juror Elena Abend (piano) will play with clarinetist Orlando Pimentel.

A recital like this has special value for the young pianists in the competition, according to PianoArts founder and artistic director Sue Medford. Aspiring musicians “need a goal to reach toward, and a way to access it,” she said. While the performers’ musical skills will no doubt inspire, the fact that all six are based in Wisconsin provides access. “The judges are within reach. The competitors could perhaps study with them, or attend a festival with them,” she explained.

Creative Partners opens with a conversation with the artists facilitated by Milwaukee pianist Stefanie Jacob. Then the music begins. The Varshavski-Shapiro Piano Duo will perform a four-hand piano transcription of orchestral dances written for the ballet Anuyta by Russian composer Valery Gavrilin (1939-1999). Gavrilin wrote the score at the request of two Russian dancers who took lead roles when the ballet premiered. The rhythmic intensity of the Tarantella movement, perhaps the most popular piece in the set, captures the delirious nature of the dance.

The Elision Duo will share Latin American music. The duo will perform pieces by two contemporary Venezuelan composers, flutist René Orea and violinist Icli Zitella (b. 1966). Also on the program is La Fleur de Cayenne, a jazzy take on the traditional Venezuelan joropo musical genre, written by Grammy and Latin Grammy Award-winning Cuban-American clarinetist and composer Paquito D’Rivera (b. 1948).

The Rector-Hong Duo will close the program with one of the most difficult pieces in the four-hand piano repertoire, Andante and Allegro Brilliant by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847). After an introspective introduction, the work explodes into brilliant virtuosity marked by fast scales, arpeggios, and crossed hands. Mendelssohn dedicated the piece to his dear friend and fellow composer Clara Schumann.

The public is invited to attend both the Creative Partners concert and the semifinal and final rounds of the Youth Competition. The concert is at 7 p.m. Friday, June 13; tickets are available at the door. The semifinal competition round begins at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 15, and the final round begins at 3 p.m. Monday, June 16. All events are at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, 1584 N. Prospect Ave. Because seating is limited for the competition rounds, those interested in attending should reserve a seat by emailing info@pianoarts.org.