The ARD International Music Competition is the largest international classical music

Classical music

Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...

 competition in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. It is held once a year in Munich

Munich

Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

.

History

Since its inception in 1952, the ARD International Music Competition has become one of the most prestigious classical music competitions. It was started by the broadcasting corporations of what was once known as the Federal Republic of Germany. It is run under the backing of the Bayerischer Rundfunk

Bayerischer Rundfunk

Bayerischer Rundfunk [Bavarian Broadcasting] is the public broadcasting authority for the German Freistaat of Bavaria, with its main offices located in Munich. BR is a member of ARD.- Legal foundation :...

 and takes place usually in September. Winning a prize at this ARD International Music Competition has been an enormous aid for internationally famous artists such as Jessye Norman

Jessye Norman

Jessye Norman is an American opera singer. Norman is a well-known contemporary opera singer and recitalist, and is one of the highest paid performers in classical music...

, Francisco Araiza

Francisco Araiza

Francisco Araiza , is a Mexican operatic tenor. As one of the leading tenors of his generation he was named Kammersänger of the Wiener Staatsoper in 1988 and has been a permanent member of the Opernhaus Zürich since 1977....

, Natalia Gutman

Natalia Gutman

Natalia Gutman is a Russian cellist. She began to study cello at the Moscow Music School with R. Sapozhnikov. She was later admitted to the Moscow Conservatory, where she was taught by Rostropovich, amongst others....

, Christoph Eschenbach

Christoph Eschenbach

Christoph Eschenbach , born February 20, 1940, Breslau, Germany is a German-born pianist and conductor. He currently holds positions in Washington, D.C. as music director of the National Symphony Orchestra and music director of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.-Early...

, Nobuko Imai

Nobuko Imai

, is a Japanese classical violist with an extensive career as soloist and chamber musician. Since 1988 she plays an Andrea Guarneri of 1690.-Biography:...

, Mitsuko Uchida

Mitsuko Uchida

, born 20 December 1948, is a Japanese naturalized British classical pianist.-Career:Born in Atami, a seaside town close to Tokyo, Japan, Uchida moved to Vienna, Austria, with her diplomat parents when she was twelve years old, after her father was named the Japanese ambassador to Austria...

, Thomas Quasthoff

Thomas Quasthoff

Thomas Quasthoff is a German bass-baritone. Although his reputation was initially based on his performance of Romantic lieder, Quasthoff has proven to have a remarkable range from the Baroque cantatas of Bach to solo jazz improvisations.-Biography:Quasthoff was born in Hildesheim, Germany, with...

, Yuri Bashmet

Yuri Bashmet

Yuri Abramovich Bashmet is a Russian conductor and violist.Direct patrilineal descendant of Besht.-Biography:Yuri Bashmet was born on 24 January 1953 in Rostov-on-Don in the family of Abram Borisovich Bashmet and Maya Zinovyeva Bashmet . "Father's mother, Tsilya Efimovna, studied singing at the...

, Christian Tetzlaff

Christian Tetzlaff

-Biography:Tetzlaff was born in Hamburg. He began playing the violin and piano at the age of 6, and made his concert debut at 14 years old. He studied with Uwe-Martin Haiberg at the Musikhochschule Lübeck and with Walter Levine at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.He is...

, Sharon Kam

Sharon Kam

Sharon Kam is a classically trained clarinetist. Notably, she won the ARD International Music Competition in 1992.; in 1991 she was also nominated for the Davidoff Prize.- Biography :...

, Heinz Holliger

Heinz Holliger

Heinz Holliger Heinz Holliger Heinz Holliger (born 21 May 1939 is a Swiss oboist, composer and conductor.-Biography:He was born in Langenthal, Switzerland, and began his musical education at the conservatories of Bern and Basel. He studied composition with Sándor Veress and Pierre Boulez...

, Isabelle Moretti, Peter Sadlo, and Maurice André

Maurice André

Maurice André is a French trumpeter, active in the classical music field.-Biography:He is a classical virtuoso trumpeter, born in Alès, France in the Cévennes into a mining family. His father was an amateur musician....

, to name just a few.

The ARD International Music Competition has its roots in an earlier competition. Between 1947 and 1950 the Frankfurter Rundfunk assisted this “Young Soloists Competition”. The earliest competition discovered two female vocalists who would soon take their place among the international talented: Christa Ludwig

Christa Ludwig

Christa Ludwig is a retired German mezzo-soprano, distinguished for her performances of opera, Lieder, oratorio and other major religious works like masses and passions, and solos contained in symphonic literature...

 and Erika Köth

Erika Köth

Erika Köth was a German operatic high coloratura soprano, particularly associated with the roles of Zerbinetta and Zerlina....

. Instrumentalists included the flautist

Flautist

A flautist or flutist is a musician who plays an instrument in the flute family. See List of flautists.The choice of "flautist" versus "flutist" is the source of dispute among players of the instrument...

 Karl-Heinz Zöller and the pianist Robert Alexander Bohnke. This newly founded ARD

ARD (broadcaster)

ARD is a joint organization of Germany's regional public-service broadcasters...

 continued the concept of bringing together talented young musicians from the entire globe.

The first ARD International Music Competition took place in 1952. What makes this competition so unique is that the categories alter from year to year to include solo instruments, as well as voice and chamber ensembles. The importance of including modern music has been very prominent; contemporary composers have regularly been commissioned to write new pieces for this Competition ever since the year 2001. The ARD International Music Competition not only stimulates competition among the many musicians but also serves the musical citizens as a centre where musicians can meet.

Anywhere from 350 to 450 young musicians apply each year to compete. Some 200 candidates coming from 35 to 40 countries make it past the preliminary round. A large percentage of competitors come from countries other than Germany (up to 86%) and this provides the highest levels of competition.

From 2001 to 2005, Christoph Poppen

Christoph Poppen

Christoph Poppen is a German conductor, violinist and academic teacher.-Professional career:As a violinist, Poppen was awarded first prize in the Kocian Violin Competition age 14...

, then the conductor

Conducting

Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...

 of the Munich Chamber Orchestra

Munich Chamber Orchestra

The Munich Chamber Orchestra is a professional chamber orchestra in Munich, Germany, known for programming contemporary music along with the classical repertory.-History:...

, has been Artistic Director

Artistic director

An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...

 of the ARD International Music Competition. Ingeborg Krause took over the task of organising the competition that same year, after serving 35 years as the head of another famous German competition called the “Jugend musiziert

Jugend musiziert

thumb|German stamp: 25 years of "Jugend musiziert"Jugend musiziert is a music competition for children and adolescents in Germany on regional, federal and national level.-Jugend musiziert in Germany:...

”.

In 2007, the ARD International Music Competition was in September for the categories of oboe

Oboe

The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...

, trombone

Trombone

The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...

, percussion and piano trio

Piano trio

A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in classical chamber music...

. The of original compositions by Johannes Maria Staud

Johannes Maria Staud

- Biography :Staud studied with, amongst others, Brian Ferneyhough and Michael Jarrell. He gained a publishing contract with Universal Edition in 2000, and since then has won numerous prizes, including a special music prize of the Austrian Republic , the composition award of the Salzburg Easter...

, Søren Nils Eichberg

Søren Nils Eichberg

Søren Nils Eichberg is a German/Danish composer. In 2010 he was announced as the first composer-in-residence of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra in the orchestra's history.He studied piano and orchestra conducting in Copenhagen and Cologne....

, Jörg Widmann

Jörg Widmann

Jörg Widmann is a German composer and clarinetist. He lives and works in Munich and Freiburg.- Education and career :...

 and Maricio Kagel will be required to be played.

2010

• Flute
  • 1st Prize: Loïc Schneider, France
  • 2nd Prize: Daniela Koch, Austria
  • 3rd Prize: Sooyun Kim, South Korea/US
  • BR Klassik Prize: Ivannay Ternay, Ukraine

• Cello
  • 1st Prize: Julian Steckel, Germany
  • 2nd Prize: Gen Yokosawa, Japan
  • 3rd Prize: Tristan Cornut, France

• French Horn
  • 1st Prize: Přemsyl Vojta, Czech Republik
  • 2nd Prize: Dániel Ember, Hungary; Paolo Mendes, Germany (shared)

• Piano Duo
  • 1st Prize: (not awarded)
  • 2nd Prize: Hyun Joo & Hee Jin June - Remnant Piano Duo, South Korea
  • 3rd Prize: Susan & Sarah Wang - DoubleWang Duo, USA
  • Special Prize: Pianoduo Groebner & Trisko, Austria

2009

• Violin
  • 1st Prize: Hyeyoon Park, Korea
  • 2nd Prize: Kei Shirai, Japan
  • 3rd Prize: Lily Francis, USA

• Double Bass
  • 1st Prize: Gunars Upatnieks, Latvia
  • 2nd Prize: Stanislau Anishchanka, Belarus
  • 3rd Prize: Olivier Thiery, France; Ivan Zavgorodniy, Ukraine (shared)

• Voice
  • 1st Prize: Anita Watson, Australia; (none awarded for male voice)
  • 2nd Prize: Sunyoung Seo, Korea; Wilhelm Schwinghammer, Germany
  • 3rd Prize: Hye Jung Lee, Korea; Falko Hönisch, Germany

2008

• Viola
  • 1st Prize: not awarded
  • 2nd Prize: Wen Xiao Zheng
    Wen Xiao Zheng
    Wen Xiao Zheng is a Chinese violist born in Shanghai. He is the second prize-winner at the 2008 ARD International Music Competition in Munich, Germany.-References:...
    
    , China
  • 3rd Prize: Teng Li, China

• Clarinet
  • 1st Prize: Sebastian Manz, Germany
  • 2nd Prize: not awarded
  • 3rd Prize: Shelly Ezra, Israel; Taira Kaneko, Japan (shared)

• Bassoon
  • 1st Prize: Marc Trénel, France
  • 2nd Prize: Christian Kunert, Germany; Philipp Tutzer, Italy (shared)
  • 3rd Prize: Václav Vonášek
    Václav Vonášek
    Václav Vonášek is a Czech classical bassoonist.He began to study the bassoon at the Concervatory in Plzeň . He went on to study at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague...
    
    , Czech Republic

• String Quartet
  • 1st Prize: Apollon Musagete Quartett, Poland
  • 2nd Prize: Afiara String Quartet, Canada
  • 3rd Prize: Gémeaux Quartet, Germany/Switzerland; Verus String Quartet, Japan (shared)

2007

• Oboe
  • 1st Prize: Ramón Ortega Quero, Spain
  • 2nd Prize: Ivan Podyomov
    Ivan Podyomov
    Ivan Podyomov is a Russian oboist.He is laureate of the second prize at the ARD International Music Competition in Munich 2007 and 2011, the first prize at the Prague Spring International Music Competition 2008, the first prize of the renowned , Japan 2009, as well as the special prizes from the...
    
    , Russia
  • 3rd Prize: Maria Sournatcheva, Russia

• Trombone
  • 1st Prize: Fabrice Millischer, France
  • 2nd Prize: Frederic Belli, Germany
  • 3rd Prize: Juan Carlos Matamoros, Spain

• Percussion
  • 1st Prize: Johannes Fischer, Germany
  • 2nd Prize: Vassilena Serafimova, Bulgaria

• Piano Trio
  • 1st Prize: Tecchler Trio, Switzerland / Germany
  • 2nd Prize: Morgenstern Trio, Germany / France
  • 3rd Prize: Trio Cérès, France

2006

• Voice/Opera
  • 1st Prize: Jun Mo Yang, Korea
  • 2nd Prize: Joshua Hopkins, Canada
  • 3rd Prize: Ilse Eerens, Belgium
  • 3rd Prize: Anna Kasyan
    Anna Kasyan
    Anna Kasyan is a Georgia-born Armenian opera singer living in France.Kasyan is one of the young artists who is viewed with high expectations in her field.-Early life and education:...
    
    , Armenia

• Voice/Lied
  • 2nd Prize: Roxana Constantinescu, Rumania
  • 2nd Prize: Carolina Ullrich, Chile / Germany
  • 3rd Prize: Colin Balzer, Canada
  • 3rd Prize: Peter Schöne, Germany

• Piano
  • 1st Prize: Benjamin Kim
    Benjamin Kim
    Benjamin Kim is a American pianist, who won the 55th ARD International Music Competition in Munich, September 2006 .Kim started studying the piano at age five with the famed Oregonian piano teacher, Dorothy Fahlman...
    
    , USA
  • 2nd Prize: Hisako Kawamura, Japan
  • 2nd Prize: Marianna Shirinyan, Armenia

• Wind Quintet
  • 1st Prize: Quintette Aquilon, France
  • 2nd Prize: Quintett Chantily, Germany / Hungary / Russia / Finland
  • 3rd Prize: Weimarer Bläserquintett, Germany

2005

• Violin
  • 1st Prize: Keisuke Okasaki, Japan
  • 2nd Prize: Akiko Yamada, Japan
  • 3rd Prize: Katja Lämmermann, Germany

• Cello
  • 1st Prize: Jing Zhao, China
  • 2nd Prize: Alexander Bouzlov, Russia
  • 3rd Prize: Alexander Chaushian, Armenia/GB

• French Horn
  • 1st Prize: Szabolcs Zempléní, Hungary
  • 2nd Prize: Louis-Philippe Marsolais, Canada
  • 2nd Prize: Renate Hupka, Germany
  • 3rd Prize: Christoph Eß, Germany

• Piano Duo
  • 2nd Prize: Victor y Luis del Valle, Spain
  • 2nd Prize: Piano Duo Poskute - Daukantas, Lithuania
  • 3rd Prize: Silivanova - Puryzhinskiy, Russia

2004

• Viola
  • 1st Prize: Antoine Tamestit
    Antoine Tamestit
    Antoine Tamestit is a French violist.Tamestit, who studied at the Paris Conservatory, has performed at such venues as the Royal Concertgebouw, the Vienna Musikverein, and Carnegie Hall...
    
    , France
  • 2nd Prize: Ryszard Groblewski, Poland
  • 3rd Prize: Tomoko Akasaka, Japan

• Flute
  • 1st Prize: Magali Mosnier, France
  • 2nd Preis: Pirmin Grehl, Germany
  • 3rd Preis: Andrea Oliva, Italy

• String Quartet
  • 1st Prize: Quatuor Ébène, Frankreich
  • 2nd Prize: Faust Quartett, Germany
  • 3rd Prize: Quatuor Benaïm, Israel/France

• Harp
  • 1st Prize: Anton Sie, Netherlands
  • 2nd Prize: Nabila Chajai, France
  • 3rd Prize: Mirjam Schröder, Germany

2003

• Voice (female)
  • 1st Prize: Marina Prudenskaja, Russia
  • 2nd Prizes: Andrea Lauren Brown, USA

Measha Brüggergosman

Measha Brueggergosman

Measha Brueggergosman is a Canadian soprano who performs both as an opera singer and concert artist. She has performed internationally and won numerous awards...

, Canada

• • 3rd Prize: Julia Sukmanova, Russia

• Voice (male)
  • 1st Prize: Gérard Kim, Korea
  • 3rd Prizee: Tyler Duncan, Canada

Günter Papendell, Germany

• Double Bass
  • 1st Prize: Nabil Shehata, Germany
  • 2nd Prize: Roman Patkoló, Slowakia
  • 3rd Prize: Ödön Rácz, Hungary

• Clarinet
  • 2nd Prize: Olivier Patey, France
  • 3rd Prize: Florent Pujuila, France

• Trumpet
  • 1st Prize: David Guerrier, France
  • 2nd Prize: Giuliano Sommerhalder, Switzerland
  • 3rd Prizes: Gabor Richter, Hungary

Guillaume Couloumy, France

2002

• Bassoon
  • 2nd Prize: Matthias Rácz, Germany
  • 3rd Prizes: Jaakko Luoma, Finland

Lyndon Watts

Lyndon Watts

Lyndon Watts is an Australian bassoonist. He is principal bassoonist of the Münchner Philharmoniker and an academic teacher.-Professional career:...

, Australia

• Oboe
  • 3rd Prizes: Nora Cismondi, France

Alexandre Gattet, France

Keiko Inoue, Japan

• Piano
  • 1st Prize: Denys Proshayev, Ukrain
  • 2nd Prize: Ferenc Vizi, Rumania
  • 3rd Prize: Chiao-Ying Chang, Taiwan

• Pianotrio
  • 2nd Prizes: Trio con Brio
    Trio con Brio Copenhagen
    Trio con Brio Copenhagen is an award-winning piano trio based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was formed in 1999 and consists of the Danish pianist Jens Elvekjaer and the two Korean sisters Soo-Jin Hong and Soo-Kyung Hong....
    
    , Denmark/Korea

Trio Ondine, Sweden/Denmark/Norway

2001

• Violin
  • 2nd prize: Annette von Hehn, Germany
  • 3rd prize: MinJung Kang, Korea

Yamei Yu, Germany

• Violoncello
  • 1st prize: Danjulo Ishizaka, Germany
  • 2nd prize: Julie Albers, USA

Monika Leskovar, Croatia

• • 3rd prize: Thomas Carroll, Great Britain

• Saxophone
  • 2nd prize: Alexandre Doisy, France
  • 3rd prize: Lutz Koppetsch, Germany

Julien Petit, France

• Percussion
  • 1st prize: Marta Klimasara, Poland
  • 2nd prize: Eirik Raude, Norway
  • 3rd prize: Christophe Roldan, France

• Wind Quintet
  • 1st prize: Miró Ensemble, Spain
  • 2nd prize: Orsolino Quintett, Germany/Austria
  • 3rd prize: St. Petersburg Woodwind Quintet, Russia

2000

• Voice (female singer)
  • 1st prize: Zoryana Kushpler, Ukraine
  • 3rd prizes: Stefanie Krahnenfeld, Germany

Christa Mayer, Germany

• Voice (male singer)
  • 1st prize: Konrad Jarnot
    Konrad Jarnot
    Konrad Jarnot is an English baritone who works in opera and oratorio and is a notable performer of Lieder. He is a teacher at the Robert Schumann Hochschule.-Early life:...
    
    , Great Britain
  • 2nd prize: Nathaniel Webster, USA
  • 3rd prize: Friedemann Röhlig, Germany

• Viola
  • 2nd prize: Danuta Waskiewicz, Germany

• Flute
  • 2nd prizes: Rozàlia Szabó, Hungary

Henrik Wiese, Germany

• • 3rd prize: Kersten McCall, Germany

• Piano Duo
  • 1st prize: Mati Mikalai / Kai Ratassepp, Estonia
  • 2nd prize: Duo d'Accord, Taiwan / Germany

• String Quartet
  • 2nd prize: Avalon String Quartett, France/ Canada/ USA
  • 3rd prize: Quartetto Prometeo, Italy

1999

• Piano
  • 2nd prizes: Severin von Eckardstein
    Severin von Eckardstein
    Severin Von Eckardstein is a German classical pianist. He was born in 1978 in Düsseldorf, Germany, and took his first piano lessons when he was six years old....
    
    , Germany

Oliver Kern, Germany

• Violin
  • 2nd prize: Bin Huang, V.R. China
  • 3rd prizes: Andrei Bielov, Ukraine

Francesco Manara, Italy

• Horn
  • 2nd prizes: Alessio Allegrini, Italy

László Seemann, Hungary

• • 3rd prize: Sibylle Mahni, Switzerland
• Organ
  • 2nd prize: Martin Kaleschke, Germany

External links

• ARD Competition
• Directory of International Piano Competitions
• Critic's Diary of the 2008 ARD Competition, ionarts.org
• Winners of the 2008 ARD Viola Competition WETA 90.9
• Winners of the 2008 ARD String Quartet Competition WETA 90.9
• http://www.finaidcollege.com/International%20Music%20Competition%20of%20the%20ARD%20Munich.htm
• Piano Competitions & Music Competitions at Bakitone International