57th Premio Paganini Violin Competition Announces Finalists

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Six violinists performed in the first part of the final round of the 57^th Paganini Violin Competition on Wednesday 25 October at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa, Italy. The selected finalists are 22-year-old Chinese violinist Qingzhu Weng, 22-year-old Chinese violinist Jingzhi Zhang, and 22-year-old German violinist Simon Zhu.

The grand prize consists of € 30,000 and the opportunity to play the Guarneri del Gesú ‘Il Cannone’ violin that once belonged to Niccolò Paganini. All six violinists from the first part of the final will be awarded a cash prize.

Weng is currently studying with Augustin Dumay and professor Antje Weithaas, and plays on a violin made by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini on loan from the foundation Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben.

Zhang is studying for a Master of Arts at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano with Pavel Berman, and performs on a Carlo Antonio Testore violin on loan from the Pro Canale Foundation of Milan.

Zhu is currently studying at the Munich University of Music with Ana Chumachenco and is receiving private lessons with Feng Ning. He is an academist at the Hope Music Academy and at the Walter Stauffer Academy Cremona, where he studies with professor Salvatore Accardo. He plays a violin by Zosimo Bergonzi, on loan from the Stretton Society.

This year’s jury comprises Michael Guttman, Régis Pasquier, Christopher Reuning, Ilya Grubert, Reiko Watanabe, Maxim Vengerov, with Salvatore Accardo acting as president of the jury.

Weng, Zhang, and Zhu will each perform a concerto from memory in the final round, accompanied by the orchestra of the Teatro Carlo Felice. It will take place on Friday 27 October at 3:00 local time at the Teatro Carlo Felice, Genoa, Italy.

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Calendars

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