This year marks Astor Piazzolla‘s centenary: he was born on 11 March 1921 in Mar del Plata, Argentina. The Fundación Astor Piazzolla and PARMA Recordings are honoring the occasion by collaborating to establish the Piazzolla Music Competition. This virtual competition, which will accept submissions until 18 April 18 2021, is open to all musicians, professional and otherwise, soloist or ensemble, instrumentalist or singer, who have an affinity for works of this trailblazing 20th-century composer.
The jury includes Pablo Ziegler, Héctor del Curto, David Binelli, Cesere Chiacchiaretta, Arthur Gottschalk, Walther Castro, Pablo Petrocelli, and Sandra Rumolino as well as performing arts executives and arts managers. They will award the grand prize winners (solo and ensemble) with a cash prize, a recording deal with PARMA Recordings, and a performance tour through China, organized and funded by the Competition. Additional special prizes will be awarded, including concerts in the 2022-2023 season with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Grosseto Symphony Orchestra, or Athens Philharmonia Orchestra to be scheduled, booked, and funded by the orchestras.
The finalists will be announced in May, and the winners will be announced on 15 June 2021.
More on the inaugural Piazzolla Music Competition:
The Piazzolla Music Competition seeks to continue Piazzolla’s legacy as the single most influential
figure in the history of tango, by identifying and celebrating highly talented musicians of any
instrument or voice type with an affinity for the inimitable style and virtuosity of Astor Piazzolla’s
compositions
• The esteemed individuals comprising the jury include: Grammy Award-winning pianist and composer
Pablo Ziegler (President of the Jury); Grammy Award-winning bandoneonist Héctor del Curto;
bandoneonist /composer David Binelli; Daniel Villaflor Piazzolla, grandson of Astor Piazzolla and vice
president of Fundación Astor Piazzolla; tango singer, actress, and dancer Sandra Rumolino;
accordionist, bandoneonist, and composer Cesere Chiacchiaretta; Professor of Music Composition at
Rice University, Arthur Gottschalk; Walther Castro, bandoneonist, composer and arranger; performing
arts manager Pablo Petrocelli; Croatian Music Institute President Romana Matanovac Vučković,
Institution Management owner and arts consultant Masae Shiwa; and Jia Rui, Vice President of
JoyTitan Entertainment
• Judged through video submissions sent in by applicants, the competition winners will be announced
on 15 June 2021
• Inclusive of all pre-professional and professional soloists and ensembles of 6 or fewer of any
nationality, state, or country of residence, any contestant over the age of 13 (at the time of video
submission) is eligible to apply
• The Piazzolla Competition offers the highly coveted grand prize, in both the solo and ensemble
divisions, of a cash prize ($1500 USD for soloist, $3500 USD for ensemble), a recording and release
deal with PARMA Recordings’s Navona Records, as well as a concert tour throughout China arranged
and funded by PARMA
• Second and Third Prize winners receive Silver or Bronze medallions, respectively, to mark their
outstanding talent and potential
• Special Prizes include the Pablo Ziegler Award, a masterclass for the soloist or ensemble recipient
and Maestro Pablo Ziegler, facilitated by PARMA Recordings; or an invitation to perform with the
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Grosseto Symphony Orchestra, or Athens Philharmonia Orchestra in the 2022-23 season, with concerts scheduled, booked, and funded by the respective acclaimed
ensembles
• The application process, designed with inclusivity of resource availability at the forefront, requires
musicians to submit by video at least two pieces totaling a minimum of six minutes, performing only
music of Astor Piazzolla, from any time between 18 April 2011 and the application deadline of 18 April
2021. Submission videos must show the musicians with hands and faces fully visible in one,
unedited take. In order to comply with COVID-19 precautions, new ensemble videos may be recorded
“frame-in-frame” in one unedited take, and must date to January 1, 2020 or later
• Applications are open from today
• Finalists will be listed publicly on May 18, 2021, and the Winners Announcement will take place on
15 June 2021
Filed under: Astor Piazzolla, competitions, music news
MEMETERIA by Thomas May 