“The Real Chopin” – the 2nd International Chopin Competition on Period Instruments

The success and wide reception of the first edition in 2018 convinced the organisers that a regular organisation of the event – every five years – will take place. The competition will be streamed and make sure not to miss Martha Argerich performing Beethoven’s first Piano Concerto!

The Competition will take place on 5–15 October 2023 at the National Philharmonic in Warsaw and is slated for three stages: the first and the second are solo recitals with repertoires composed of, beside Chopin, selected pieces by Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and polonaises by Polish composers active in the first half of the 19th century. In the third stage, the six finalists will perform their choice of Chopin’s works with an orchestra. They will be accompanied by Martyna Pastuszka’s {oh!} Orkiestra.

Historical Instruments

The competing pianists will have at their disposal historical instruments from the Chopin Institute’s collection – Erards from 1838, 1849, and 1855, Pleyels from 1848 and 1854 and a Broadwood from 1843, and besides those, also replicas of period instruments and instruments kindly loaned from European collections.

The Jury

The pianists will be assessed by an international jury composed of eminent musicians specialising in historically informed performance, notably Andreas Staier, Paolo Giacometti and Tobias Koch, and eminent Chopin experts.

Competition streaming schedule >>

Watch Argerich and Ritter Live!

The festive inauguration of the competition will take place on 5 October at 17:00 p.m. GMT, starring Martha Argerich, Tomasz Ritter, Naruhiko Kawaguchi, Bruce Liu, {oh!} Orchestra, and the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic Choir under the direction of Vaclav Luks.

Watch the streaming here:

The program:
DAI FUJIKURA [1977–]
1. Bridging Realms for fortepiano (a work composed for the inauguration of the 2nd International Chopin Competition on Period Instruments)

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN [1770–1827]
2. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37 (Tomasz Ritter)
3. Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15 (Martha Argerich)
4. Fantasy in C minor for Piano, Mixed Choir and Orchestra, Op. 80

Read more at iccpi.pl