The ZF Music Prize: a springboard for international careers
Six musicians from six nations in competition for the 2024 ZF Music Prize
June 2 is the scheduled date, so just a few days to go. Then six multi-award-winning musicians from six nations are set to take up the challenge and compete in the piano competition for the 2024 ZF‑Music Prize, in its eleventh instalment: Sophie Druml from Austria, Roman Fediurko from Ukraine, Julian Gast from Germany, Jacopo Giovannini from Italy, Seonghyeon Leem from South Korea and Muzi Li from China.
The piano competition for the ZF Music Prize has proved to be an important stepping stone along the path to an international career. Past winners include such renowned piano virtuosos as Herbert Schuch (2004), Alexej Gorlatch (2008), Claire Huangci (2012), Aaron Pilsan (2014), Raúl da Costa (2016), Dmytro Choni (2018) and Xiaolu Zang (2022). They have gone on to confirm their exceptional prowess with first prizes at internationally renowned competitions such as the London International Piano Competition, the Vienna International Beethoven Piano Competition, the ARD Music Competition in Munich, the Hamamatsu International Piano Academy Competition in Shizuoka (Japan) and the Allessandro Casagrande International Piano Competition in Terni (Italy). And all have since stepped out onto the world’s big stages and enjoyed international acclaim.
Herbert Schuch, winner of the 2004 ZF Music Prize, puts it in a nutshell: ‘Back then, the festival proved very, very rewarding for me – being able to play with an orchestra during a festival simply cannot be taken for granted. The ZF Music Prize provided the vital spark as it were. It was to be the first of four competitions that I would go on to win.’ Shaun Choo, the 2010 winner, could not agree more: ‘The ZF Art Foundation played an important role in my music career. I had my first success with the ZF Music Prize and it ushered in a number of other highlights in 2010 alone. The piano festival paved the way for me to perform at various events with a wide array of orchestras.’
The close ties between the ZF Music Prize and the Young Masters Piano Festival, the opportunity to play with major orchestras at a young age and acquire both stage craft and competition experience are the mainstays that characterise the small-scale yet outstanding piano competition for the ZF Music Prize. The ZF Art Foundation has collaborated with Peter Vogel for 26 years now, with tremendous success. In 1999, the ZF Art Foundation became the main sponsor of the Young Masters Piano Festival, which was designed to enable young pianists to perform with an orchestra. In fact, the first ZF Music Prize was awarded back in 2001.
Indeed, Artistic Director Peter Vogel has been the pivotal figure, not to say the key to our success, with a keen instinct for exceptional talents and outstanding concepts, particularly well-tailored to the needs of young musicians. His international network of contacts connects the Lake Constance region with all the main music academies and international piano teachers, which is why, this year
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