Roman Fediurko wins the 2024 ZF Music Prize

Last Sunday, June 2, Roman Fediurko from Ukraine won the ZF‑Music Prize worth EUR 10,000. Second place with prize money totalling EUR 5,000 went to Seonghyeon Leem from South Korea while Julian Gast from Germany took third place with prize money of EUR 3,000.

The piano competition for the 2024 ZF Music Prize 2024 could not have been more thrilling. This year again, the level of competition was exceptionally high. Five multi-award winning young pianists from five nations took part in the event. The three finalists had already demonstrated a high level of musicality and tremendous virtuosity during the first two selection rounds. Indeed, the three young artists had prevailed in supreme fashion in the first two rounds of the competition held at the Münzhof in Langenargen and the Forum am See in Lindau, with masterly prowess and outstanding interpretations of works by Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven as well as works of the Neue Musik and German Romantic periods.

The standard was just as high for the third and decisive competition concert last Sunday at the Graf-Zeppelin-Haus in Friedrichshafen. Concert études and works from the 19^th and 20^th centuries made up a challenging programme that once again demanded commanding performances from all three finalists. An audience of more than 400 was in attendance at the Graf-Zeppelin-Haus in Friedrichshafen to enjoy at first hand the final concert featuring these exceptional young virtuosos. Their high expectations were more than fulfilled. All three finalists excelled, to the delight of the audience, performing a concert characterised by memorable musical enjoyment of the highest order.

During the interval, the public eagerly awaited the result of the count for the Audience Award and, above all, the decision of the jury, whose task it was to adjudicate on the performances across all three concerts. The members of this year’s international jury, chaired by Peter Vogel, were Prof. Yuka Imamine, Professor of Piano at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich, Prof. Roland Krüger, Professor of Piano at the Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media, and Xiaolu Zang, winner of the 2022 ZF Music Prize.

For his consistently brilliant performances in all three competition concerts, the jury elected Roman Fediurko as the winner of the 2024 ZF Music Prize. ‘At the age of only 19, Roman Fediurko is already an accomplished pianist in all aspects of piano playing and music-making. Over the three rounds of the competition he has demonstrated a most profound understanding of a vast range of musical epochs. His playing stands out by virtue of his masterful technique, enormous richness of colours, extreme variety in his attack and a natural emotionality,’ to quote the jury in its statement. In the final concert, the young Ukrainian was once again most convincing, with renditions of Sergei Rachmaninov’s Études Tableaux op. 33 in E flat minor No. 5, the Étude in G sharp minor op. 25 No. 6 and the Sonata No. 3 in B flat minor op. 58 by Frédéric Chopin.

Seonghyeon Leem took second place in the final ranking. The South Korean pianist excelled in Friedrichshafen with the Études Tableaux op. 39 No. 9 by Sergei Rachmaninov, the Étude op. 10 No. 8 by Frédéric Chopin, the Violin Partita in E major No. 3 by Johann Sebastian Bach in the arrangement by Sergei Rachmaninov, and The Firebird by Igor Stravinsky.

Third-placed Julian Gast from Germany again demonstrated virtuoso skills on the final evening, with the Grande Étude de Paganini No. 2 in E flat major by Franz Liszt, the Étude in F major op. 10 No. 8 by Frédéric Chopin and the Sonata No. 7 in B flat major op. 83 by Sergei Prokofiev.

The audience plays an active part in the ZF Music Prize by awarding an Audience Award worth EUR 500 at each concert. In addition to the literary focus, which affords each concert its own special appeal, the Audience Award also makes the competition a particularly exciting musical experience. The Audience Award at the second concert went to Julian Gast. The clear audience favourite at the first and third concerts was Roman Fediurko, who ultimately picked up the 2024 ZF Music Prize and two Audience Awards.

Press contact
ZF ART FOUNDATION
Regina Michel
D-88038 Friedrichshafen
T +49 7541 77-7114
ertvan.zvpury@ms.pbz

Further informations:
ZF Music Award 2024