For the first time in the history of the Enescu Competition, the jury has decided that four young musicians enter the Cello Section Final, instead of three as it was previously decided. This choice is motivated by the high artistic level of the competitiors registered at this edition of the competition in Bucharest.
Stanislas Kim (France), Shizuka Mitsui (Japan), Yibai Chen (China), Marcel Johannes Kits (Estonia) are the cellist that will enchant the public on Tuesday evening, September 11th, during the final, with concertos by Dvořák and Shostakovich.
Stanislas Kim (France), Shizuka Mitsui (Japan), Yibai Chen (China), Marcel Johannes Kits (Estonia) qualified for the Final of the Cello Section at the George Enescu International Competition 2018. The results were announced on Sunday evening by the specialized jury consisting of David Geringas, (President of the Jury), Raphael Wallfisch, Leonid Gorokhov, Alexandra Guțu, Jian Wang, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, Myung-Wha Chung, Philippe Muller și Marin Cazacu.
The audience can listen to the four concertos with orchestra performed by the four finalists of the Section on Tuesday, September 11th, at the Romanian Athenaeum, starting 6.00 p.m. Bucharest time in the Cello Section Final: the Cello Concerto in B minor, op. 104 by Antonín Dvořák performed by the young cellist Stanislas Kim and also by Shizuka Mitsui and the Cello Concerto no. 1 in E flat major op. 107 by Dmitri Shostakovich performed by the young cellists Yibai Chen and Marcel Johannes Kits. The George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra will be conducted by Paul Watkins.
Tickets to the Cello Final are available in the EVENTIM network.
Yibai Chen (China) was born on the 30th of September 2001. He is currently studying under the guidance of Professor Danjulo Ishizaka at the University of Arts in Berlin. He participated in several master classes held by Marti Rousi, Liwei Qin, Jian Wang, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt and Jens Peter Maintz. He performed at the University of Cambridge in July 2012 and played the Sarasate “Zigeunerweisen” with the Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim. Yibai is the laureate of the 11th Lutoslawski International Cello Competition in Warsaw, 2018.
Graduate of the Courbevoie Conservatory, Stanislas Kim (France), born on the 24th of August, 1993, participated in master classes held by David Geringas, Frans Helmerson, Natalia Gutman, Arto Noras, Jérôme Pernoo, Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt and Jens Peter Maintz. Playing on a cello of the Vuillaume school, on loan from the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben, he has performed in festivals such as Bachtage Würzburg, Grieg Festival Bergen, Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Stanislas is a laureate of the 12th International Competition of Chamber Music in Lyon, the 8th Swedish International Competition, International “Brahms” Competition and the International “Hindemith” Competition.
The Estonian Marcel Johnannes Kits, born on the 2nd of May 1995, plays on a cello made by Francesco Ruggeri in Cremona, 1674 and with a bow made by Victor Fetique, both on loan by the Deutsche Stiftung. He is studying at the Berlin University of the Arts with Prof. Jens Peter Maintz and has participated in several masterclasses with Maria Kliegel, László Fenyö, Wen-Sinn Yang, Jan-Erik Gustafsson, Marko Ylönen, David Geringas, Steven Isserlis. Furthermore, he performed as a soloist with various orchestra such as the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, Pärnu City Orchestra, Latvian National SO, Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, St. Petersburg SO. Marcel is a laureate of the International “Dombrovsky” Competition and the “Johannes Brahms” Competition.
Shizuka Mitsui, born on the 14th of May 1992, is a semifinalist of the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, May 2017. He studied at the Mozarteum University Salzburg in the class of Giovanni Gnocchi in 2014 and since 2016 he has been studying with Clemens Hagen and participated in masterclasses with Jens Peter Maintz, Natalia Gutman, Jian Wang, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, Masato Iwai, Danjulo Ishizaka, Wolfgang Boettcher and Gautier Capuçon. Shizuka is a laureate of Izumino-Mori Cello Competition, Japan Classic Competition, Enrico Mainardi Competition (1st Prize), Tokyo Music Competition.
Organized as a stand-alone event since the 2014 edition, “George Enescu” International Competition invites the audience to discover some of the most talented young artists today, great names of tomorrow’s classical music, and to follow and support their journey to the top: winning the competition. This year “George Enescu” International Competition celebrates 60 years after the first edition of the Competition.
For further details, please access: https://www.festivalenescu.ro
Contacts for the media:
[email protected], +40 740. 123. 689
[email protected], +40 732. 338. 010
Translation provided by Biroul de Traduceri Champollion
