The European Piano Competition Bremen (German'': Europäischer Klavierwettbewerb Bremen'', also known as the ''Bremer Klavierwettbewerb)'' is an international piano

competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indi ...

held every 2 years in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

. It was founded in 1987 by

Radio Bremen Radio Bremen (), shortened to RB () is Germany's smallest Public broadcasting, public radio and television broadcaster and the legally mandated broadcaster for the city-state Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (which includes Bremerha ...

. The competition is open to pianists from all over Europe, including the musicians from CIS states, Turkey and Israel. Due to its high artistic requirements and esteemed jury, the European Piano Competition Bremen gained a reputable position among international competitions since its inception. The Competition is organized by

, the Sparkasse Bremen, the Glocke, the Sendesaal Bremen and the Bremen Philharmonic Orchestra. From the very beginning competition has always been overseen by the current Minister for Foreign of Germany.

List of winners

Source. # Andreas Woyke (1987) # Manfred Kratzer (1989) # Nadja Rubanenko and Daniel Gortler, jointly (1991) # Cédric Tiberghien and Igor Kamenz, jointly (1993) # Filippo Gamba (1995) # Peter Laul (1997) # Emre Elivar and Alexandre Pirojenko, jointly (1999) # Eugene Mursky (2001) # Julian Gorus (2003) # David Meier (2005) # Yana Vasilyeva (2007) # Violetta Khachikyan (2009) # Jamie Bergin (2012) # Stanislav Khegai and Jean-Paul Gasparian, jointly (2014) # Elizaveta Ukrainskaia (2016) # Marek Kozák (2018) # Valère Burnon (2021)

Jury

*2021 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Ian Fountain, United Kingdom ** Andreas Groethuysen, Germany ** Violetta Khachikyan, Russia ** Matthias Kornemann, Germany ** Gülsin Onay, Turkey ** Erik Tawaststjerna, Finland *2018 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Olivier Gardon, France **

Klaus Hellwig Klaus Hellwig (born 3 August 1941) is a German pianist and academic teacher. Life and career Born in Essen,Axel Schniederjürgen (publisher): ''Kürschners Musiker-Handbuch''. 5th edition de Gruyter, 2006, Hellwig studied with Detlef Kraus in ...

, Germany ** Elza Kolodin, Poland ** Jevgeny Koroliov, Russia ** Peter Laul, Russia **

Florian Ludwig Florian Ludwig (born 1970) is a German conductor focused on opera. He was music director at the Oper Hagen from 2008 to 2016, and has worked as a guest conductor internationally. He has been professor of orchestral conducting at the Hochschule f ...

, Germany *2016 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Boris Bloch, Ukraine ** Finghin Collins, Ireland **

Ewa Kupiec Ewa Kupiec (born 2 November 1964 in Duszniki-Zdrój) is a Polish classical pianist. In 1992 she won the ARD Music Competition in the piano/cello category. In 2005 she performed Schnittke’s First Piano Concerto with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orc ...

, Poland ** Piers Lane, Australia ** David Meier, Germany ** Mitsuko Shirai, Japan *2014 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Hamish Milne, United Kingdom ** Eugene Mursky, Berlin ** Alfredo Perl, Chile ** Catherine Rückwardt, US **

Henri Sigfridsson Henri Sigfridsson (born 1974) is a Finnish classical pianist. Studies Born in Turku, Sigfridsson began his musical studies in his native hometown conservatory. He then attended Erik T. Tawaststjerna's class at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. ...

, Finland ** Tamas Vesmas, Romania * 2012 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Aquiles Delle Vigne, Argentina ** Gerald Fauth, Germany ** Julian Gorus, Bulgaria ** Karen Kamensek, Chicago ** Jonathan Plowright, United Kingdom ** Nina Tichman, New York * 2009 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Peter Cossé, Austria ** Julian Gorus, Bulgaria ** Emanuel Krasovsky, Israel ** Gitti Pirner, Germany ** Matti Raekallio, Finland **

Maria Tipo Maria Tipo (23 December 1931 – 10 February 2025) was an Italian pianist who made an international career after she won the 1949 Geneva International Music Competition and came in third at the Queen Elisabeth Competition. She revived the music ...

, Italy * 2007 ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany – Chair ** Pi-Hsien Chen, Taiwan ** Homero Francesch, Switzerland ** Filippo Gamba, Italy ** Kalle Randalu, Estonia ** Wilfried Schäper, Germany ** Nina Tichman, US * 2005 ** Peter Schilbach, Germany – Chair ** Peter Cossé, Austria ** András Hamary, Hungary ** Heinz Medjimorec, Austria **

Gülsin Onay Gülsin Onay (born 12 September 1954) is a Turkish classical pianist. She lives in Cambridge, England. Education Born into a musical family, Gülsin Onay began to play the piano at the age of three. Her first teacher was her mother. When she ...

, Turkey ** Cécile Ousset, France ** Begoña Uriarte, Spain * 2003 ** Peter Schilbach, Germany – Chair ** Peter Cossé, Austria ** Ewa Kupiec, Poland ** Nikolaus Lahusen, Germany ** Maria Tipo, Italy ** Begoña Uriarte, Spain ** Arie Vardi, Israel * 2001 ** Jürgen Meyer-Josten, Germany – Chair ** Konstanze Eickhorst, Germany ** Pi-Hsien Chen, Taiwan ** Heinz Medjimorec, Austria ** Anne Queffélec, France ** Einar Steen-Nokleberg, Norway ** Kurt Seibert, Germany * 1999 ** Peter Schilbach, Germany – Chair ** Peter Cossé, Austria ** Valentin Gheorghiu, Romania ** Cécile Ousset, France ** Peter Rösel, Germany ** Maria Tipo, Italy ** Begoña Uriarte, Spain * 1997 ** Jürgen Meyer-Josten, Germany – Chair ** Peter Cossé, Austria ** Valentin Gheorghiu, Romania ** Cécile Ousset, France ** Kurt Seibert, Germany ** Einar Steen-Nökleberg, Norway ** Begoña Uriarte, Spain * 1995 ** Peter Schilbach, Germany – Chair ** Maria Tipo, Italy ** Nina Tichman, USA ** Gülsin Onay, Turkey ** Catherine Vickers, Canada ** Homero Francesch, Uruguay ** Roland Keller, Germany * 1993 ** Jürgen Meyer-Josten, Germany – Chair ** Kurt Bauer, Germany ** Bernhard Ebert, Germany **

Gerhard Erber Gerhard Erber (21 November 1934 – 4 September 2021) was a German classical pianist and academic teacher. He played as a member of the East German ensemble Gruppe Neue Musik Hanns Eisler, which focused on contemporary chamber music. He was a pr ...

, Germany ** Valentin Gheorghiu, Romania ** Renate Kretschmar-Fischer, Germany ** Gülsin Onay, Turkey ** Klaus Schilde, Germany * 1991 ** Peter Schilbach, Germany – Chair ** Volker Banfield, Germany ** Karl Betz, Germany ** Valentin Gheorghiu, Romania ** Gitti Pirner, Germany ** Annerose Schmidt, Germany ** Arie Vardi, Israel **

Dinorah Varsi Dinorah Varsi (15 November 1939 - 17 June 2013) was a Uruguayan classical pianist. Early life Varsi was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. She started playing the piano at the age of three and studied with Sarah Bourdillon de Santorsola, at Montevideo ...

, Switzerland * 1989 ** Klaus Bernbacher, West Germany – Chair **

Pavel Gililov Pavel Lvovich Gililov (; born 23 June 1950) is a Ukrainian classical pianist who has held German citizenship since 2003. Life Born in Donetsk, Russia, Donezk, Gililov's musical talent was discovered by the Russian composer Dmitry Kabalevsky. H ...

, USSR ** Eliza Hansen, West Germany ** Margarita Höhenrieder, West Germany **

Detlef Kraus Detlef Kraus (30 November 1919 – 7 January 2008) was a German pianist. He was an internationally known interpreter of the music of Johannes Brahms. Born in Hamburg, Kraus gave his first concert at the age of 16, playing '' The Well-Tempered ...

, West Germany ** Annerose Schmidt, GDR * 1987 **

Klaus Bernbacher Klaus Bernbacher (25 January 1931 – 3 December 2023) was a German conductor, music event manager, broadcasting manager and academic teacher. He co-founded the ''Tage der Neuen Musik Hannover'', a festival for contemporary music, in 1958. He wa ...

, West Germany – Chair ** Bernhard Ebert, West Germany ** Eliza Hansen, West Germany **

Germaine Mounier Germaine Mounier (7 February 1920 – 27 June 2006) was a 20th-century French classical pianist and music educator. Biography Born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Mounier won First prize at the Conservatoire de Paris. She worked the piano with Yves Nat an ...

, France ** Kurt Seibert, West Germany ** Janos Solyom, Sweden

References

External links

Official website of the European Piano Competition Bremen
{{Authority control Piano competitions Music competitions Classical music awards Music in Bremen (city) 1987 establishments in West Germany Recurring events established in 1987 Organisations based in Bremen (city)