6th International piano competition of Orléans 2004

Lauréats 2004 © DR

The 6th International piano competition of Orléans was held from March 8th to March 14th in 2004 and has consecrated Francesco Tristano Schlime, Reto Reichenbach and Ya-Ou Xie as the 3 finalists of this year.

The competition continued with a prestigious concert by the laureates at the Scène Nationale d’Orléans with the Orchestre National de Lille on November 18th 2004. Among the works proposed: Cage, Ligeti, Schoenberg and the commissioned piece by Thierry Escaich, a worldwide creation played by the finalists at Saint-Marceau church in Orléans with the support of the Benaim Quartet to perform Fauré or Shostakovitch Quintet for piano and strings.

Dates:

From March 8th to March 14th 2004.

Rules & Regulations:

All information regarding the organisation of the rounds and contest procedures are available in the Contest Program and Rules.

Members of the Jury:

• Michel Decoust – Composer, France – President of the Jury
• Ursula Oppens – Pianist, USA
• Hakon Austbo – Pianist, Norway
• Ronald Cavaye – Pianist, UK
• Peter Cosse – Musicologist, Austria
• Eugène Moguilevsky – Pianist, Russia
• Ichiro Nodaira – Pianist, Japan

Prize List 2004:

You can find the Prize List and laureates 2004 HERE

Commissioned piece:

Title: Choral’s Dream, for organ and piano

Composer: Thierry Escaich

” Il s’agit d’un petit poème symphonique où l’on part du rêve pour s’acheminer vers des instants violents et dynamiques voire dramatiques. Ce qui est intéressant est que je vais avoir affaire à des tempi et à des interprétations différentes qui vont me pousser à jouer différemment en fonction des candidats, autant de pianistes qui viennent ici mettre l’accent sur ce qu’ils aiment. Choral’s dream est une musique de chambre et nous allons ainsi travailler sur le timbre et le dialogue, avec rupture ou passage en douceur de l’un à l’autre. La musique contemporaine ? En vérité, je suis tombé dedans. Mais on n’opte pas pour la musique contemporaine, on fait de la musique tout court. “

Note of intent from Thierry Escaich
Commission of “Orléans Concours International” for the 6th International piano competition of Orléans

The Composer: Thierry Escaich

Organist and renowned improviser, Thierry Escaich has an important place in today’s musical creation. Since 1990, when he ended studying at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris and had 8 First Prize, he is rewarded for his first pieces by the Prix Blumenthal with unanimity of the jury formed by personalities like Eliott Carter, Henri Dutilleux or Maurice Ohana. Various prizes: SACEM, Institut de France, Grand Prix des Lycéens in 2002 and a Victoire de la musique for composer of the year in 2003.
He has a particular musical universe, “d’une rare densité expressive” said Télérama (“an uncommon expressive density”) in which pieces mix as le Chant des Ténèbres (1992), Concerto for organ and orchestra (1995), Résurgences for trumpet and orchestra (2002) and le Dernier Evangile, his oratorio (2000).

His orchestral works are played by various french or foreign orchestras: Beethoven Orchester Bonn, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio-France and Orchestre National de Lille in which Thierry Escaich in residency from 2003 to 2005.
In 2002, he won the Diapason d’or of the year for his orchestral pieces album (Accord/Universal). He is also the organist of Saint-Etienne du Mont organ in Paris since 1997 (he came after Maurice Duruflé), has an international organist career and is therefore an ambassador of French organ school. He made recordings under Chamade Label and Calliope Records, rewarded by numerous de nombreuses discographic distinctions.

Last, his passion for cinema pushed him to improvise at piano or organ, to compose for silent films: for instance, his accompaniment score for the american movie 7th Heaven by Frank Borzage ordered by Le Louvre in 1999. Since 1992, Thierry Escaich is a music teacher for writing and improvisation at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris.

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