[NEohioPAL]Winners of the Oberlin Int'l Piano Competition

Marci Janas pjanas at oberlin.edu
Mon Jul 28 21:46:05 PDT 2003


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THE WINNERS OF THE NINTH ANNUAL OBERLIN
INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION

<Editors please note: biographies of winners are included.>

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JULY 28, 2003

OBERLIN, OHIO -- Rachel Kudo, a 16-year-old pianist from Northbrook, 
Illinois, and a student of Emilio del Rosario at the Music Institute of 
Chicago, is the winner of the Ninth Annual Oberlin International Piano 
Competition and Festival. The final round of the competition, for pianists 
13 through 18 years old, was held Saturday, July 26, in Warner Concert Hall =

at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Kudo received $4,000 for her 
first-prize-winning performance of the first movement of Haydn's Sonata, 
Chopin's Etudes, Op. 10, Nos. 1-5, and his Ballade No. 4, Op. 52.

	The second-prize award of $1,500 and the audience favorite award of $100 
went to Kevin Kordi, also 16, from Northbrook, Illinois. He also is a 
student of del Rosario at the Music Institute of Chicago. Sora Oh, 18, of 
Seoul, Korea, won third prize and $1,000. Kordi performed Mendelssohn's 
Song without Words, the first movement of Beethoven's "Appassionata" 
sonata, the finale of Prokofiev's Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Liszt's 
"Chasse-neige" (Etude No. 12), and the Horowitz-Busoni arrangement of his 
Mephisto Waltz. Oh presented Bach's Prelude and Fugue No. 3, Mendelssohn's 
Song without Words, the first and second movements of Beethoven's Sonata 
Op. 10, No. 3, and Chopin's Fantasie, Op. 49.

	The remaining two finalists, Ye Jin Lee, 15, of South Korea and Kei 
Neidra, 13, of North Ridgeville, Ohio placed fourth and fifth, =
respectively.

	The five finalists were each asked to perform 30 minutes of repertoire; 
they were told which pieces to play just moments before walking on stage. 
Technical difficulties precluded airing the concert live as scheduled on 
WCLV-FM and wclv.com; the station will air the recorded concert on Tuesday, =

July 29, at 9 p.m. Kendal at Oberlin is the program=3Fs sponsor.
	
	Guest judges for the finals round were Hans Boepple, chair of the music 
department at Santa Clara University; Ekaterina Murina, chief professor and =

chair of piano at the St. Petersburg Conservatory in Russia; and 
broadcaster, writer, and teacher Robert Sherman, host of the McGraw-Hill 
Companies' Young Artists Showcase on WQXR, the classical music radio 
station of The New York Times. Judges from the Oberlin Conservatory faculty =

were Associate Professor of Piano Alvin Chow, Professor of Piano Monique 
Duphil, and Professor of Piano Sanford Margolis.

	The Oberlin Conservatory of Music, founded in 1865, is the oldest 
continuously operating conservatory in the United States, and is renowned 
internationally for the intensive professional training opportunities it 
provides to aspiring professional musicians.  The Oberlin Conservatory's 
facilities include 199 Steinway pianos, 150 practice rooms, and a music 
library equal to that of any major university. Oberlin offers intensive 
professional training to aspiring musicians; its students and alumni have 
won prizes in numerous international piano competitions, including the Van 
Cliburn, the Fryderyk Chopin, the Queen Elisabeth, the Arthur Rubinstein, 
the Walter W. Naumburg, the University of Maryland, the Kosciuszko 
Foundation Chopin Piano Competition, and the Concorsco Pianis-Otico 
Internazionale F. Busoni Competition.

	Notable pianists who graduated from Oberlin include concert and recording 
artist and Rubenstein Competition winner Gregory Allen; Jeremy Denk, a 
National Public Radio Young Artist-in-Residence; international recording 
and concert artist and Peabody Conservatory of Music faculty member Marian 
Hahn; and the legendary Natalie Hinderas, one of the first African American =

women to perform as a soloist with a major symphony orchestra (the 
Philadelphia Orchestra).


Winners of the Ninth Annual Oberlin International Piano Competition

FIRST PRIZE: 	RACHEL KUDO

At 16, Rachel Naomi Kudo of Northbrook, Illinois, has appeared in concert 
and concerto performances around the world. At 14, she was the youngest 
artist invited to perform with such artists as Michel Baroff, Garrick 
Ohlssohn, and Yundi Li at the 56th International Chopin Festival in 
Duszniki-Zdroj. Other appearances include the 14th International Nagoya 
Music Festival, the International "New Names of the 21st Century" Music 
Festival in Russia, Chopin=3Fs birth house, Zelazowa Wola in Poland, the 
Stradivarius Museum in Cremona, the Schubert Club in Minneapolis, and the 
"Opening Night Gala Celebration," honoring Sir Andrew Davis, for the Music 
Institute of Chicago. Rachel has also appeared with the Ars Viva, Everett, 
Fort Worth, and Fukui symphony orchestras, as well as the Nagoya Youth 
Symphony of Japan and the Far Eastern Symphony Orchestra of Russia.

Among her many awards are first prize in the 1999 53rd All-Japan Student 
Music Concours, along with its Nomura and Tsuzuki awards, first prize in 
the 2000 Czerny-Stefanska International Piano Competition, including its 
prestigious Stefanska Award, and first prizes in the Steinway Society of 
Chicago's Solo and Concerto competitions, both in 2001. Most recently, 
Rachel was named the winner of the 2003 Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Chicago 
Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions; she is scheduled to appear as a soloist =

with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during its 2003-04 season. Rachel is 
also an avid chamber musician, and her piano trio, the Subito Trio, won the =

silver medal in the Junior Division of the 2003 Fischoff National Chamber 
Music Competition. She studies with Emilio del Rosario at the Music 
Institute of Chicago.

SECOND PRIZE:	KEVIN KORDI

Kevin Kordi, 16, a student at Glenbrook North High School in Illinois, 
studies piano with Emilio del Rosario at the Music Institute of Chicago. 
Kevin's appearances include six concerts in 2001 as soloist with the 
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, performing Mendelssohn's Piano Concerto in G 
minor. In 1999, he performed with the 11th Street Trio at Boston's Jordan 
Hall, and in 2001 he performed with Van Cliburn winner Jon Nakamatsu at the =

first Meadowlark Music Festival. In 2002 he soloed with the Glenbrook 
Symphony Orchestra. Kevin has won numerous piano competitions, including 
first place in the primary, junior, and senior levels of the Society of 
American Musicians' competition. In 2002, he won the Sherwin Foundation 
Award at the American Opera Society. In June 2002, Kevin won first prize in =

the Piano Arts of Wisconsin National Concerto Competition, performing 
Beethoven=3Fs First Concerto with the Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra. Kevin =
has 
participated in master classes with such artists as Jon Nakamatsu, Frederic =

Chiu, Charles Asche, and George Crumb. In October 2002, Kevin performed at 
the World Piano Pedagogical Conference in Las Vegas. Recently, he performed =

George Crumb's A Little Suite for Christmas for the composer in a concert 
at Evanston, Illinois. In his spare time, Kevin enjoys performing in 
nursing homes, schools, and a variety of other places.

THIRD PRIZE:	SORA OH

Eighteen-year-old Sora Oh was born in Seoul, Korea, where she began 
studying the piano at the age of 4. She moved to Roseville, Minnesota, at 
15. In 2001 she won first prize at two Minnesota competitions, the Schubert =

Club Competition in St. Paul and Minneapolis' YPSCA Competition. Sora has 
performed with the Poland National Orchestra and the Rumania National Black =

Sea Orchestra. A student of Lydia Artymiw, Sora will enter the Juillard 
School this fall as a scholarship student to study with Jerome Lowenthal 
and begin work toward her bachelor's degree.

###

Media Contact Only:  	       Marci Janas: 
440-775-8328/marci.janas at oberlin.edu	7/28/03 #02-mj	









________________________________________
Marci Janas
Director of Conservatory Media Relations
Oberlin Conservatory of Music
39 West College Street
Oberlin, OH  44074
vox: 440-775-8328
fax: 440-776-3006
marci.janas at oberlin.edu
www.o
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<fontfamily><param>Palatino</param><center><bigger><bigger><bold>THE =
WINNERS OF THE NINTH ANNUAL OBERLIN 

INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION 

</bold></bigger></bigger><bold>

<<Editors please note: biographies of winners are included.>


</bold></center><bold><flushleft>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JULY 28, 2003

</flushleft><center>

</center></bold><flushleft>OBERLIN, OHIO --<bold> Rachel Kudo</bold>, a =
16-year-old pianist from Northbrook, Illinois, and a student of Emilio del =
Rosario at the Music Institute of Chicago, is the <bold>winner of =
the</bold> <bold>Ninth</bold> <bold>Annual Oberlin International Piano =
Competition and Festival</bold>. The final round of the competition, for =
pianists 13 through 18 years old, was held Saturday, July 26, in Warner =
Concert Hall at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Kudo received $4,000 for =
her first-prize-winning performance of the first movement of Haydn's =
<italic>Sonata</italic>, Chopin's <italic>Etudes</italic>, Op. 10, Nos. =
1-5, and his <italic>Ballade</italic> No. 4, Op. 52.


<bold>	</bold>The <bold>second-prize award</bold> of $1,500 and the =
<bold>audience favorite award</bold> of $100 went to <bold>Kevin =
Kordi</bold>, also 16, from Northbrook, Illinois. He also is a student of =
del Rosario at the Music Institute of Chicago. <bold>Sora Oh</bold>, 18, of =
Seoul, Korea, <bold>won third prize</bold> and $1,000. Kordi performed =
Mendelssohn's <italic>Song without Words</italic>, the first movement of =
Beethoven's "Appassionata" sonata, the finale of Prokofiev's Sonata No. 2, =
Op. 14, Liszt's "Chasse-neige" (Etude No. 12), and the Horowitz-Busoni =
arrangement of his <italic>Mephisto Waltz</italic>. Oh presented Bach's =
<italic>Prelude and Fugue</italic> No. 3, Mendelssohn's <italic>Song =
without Words</italic>, the first and second movements of Beethoven's =
Sonata Op. 10, No. 3, and Chopin's <italic>Fantasie</italic>, Op. 49.


	The remaining two finalists, <bold>Ye Jin Lee</bold>, 15, of South Korea =
and <bold>Kei Neidra, </bold>13, of North Ridgeville, Ohio <bold>placed =
fourth and fifth, respectively</bold>.


	The five finalists were each asked to perform 30 minutes of repertoire; =
they were told which pieces to play just moments before walking on stage. =
Technical difficulties precluded airing the concert live as scheduled on =
WCLV-FM and wclv.com; the station will air the recorded concert on Tuesday, =
July 29, at 9 p.m. Kendal at Oberlin is the program=3Fs sponsor.  

<bold>	

	</bold>Guest judges for the finals round were Hans Boepple, chair of the =
music department at Santa Clara University; Ekaterina Murina, chief =
professor and chair of piano at the St. Petersburg Conservatory in Russia; =
and broadcaster, writer, and teacher Robert Sherman, host of the =
McGraw-Hill Companies' Young Artists Showcase on WQXR, the classical music =
radio station of <italic>The New York Times</italic>. Judges from the =
Oberlin Conservatory faculty were Associate Professor of Piano Alvin Chow, =
Professor of Piano Monique Duphil, and Professor of Piano Sanford Margolis. =



	The Oberlin Conservatory of Music, founded in 1865, is the oldest =
continuously operating conservatory in the United States, and is renowned =
internationally for the intensive professional training opportunities it =
provides to aspiring professional musicians. =
<color><param>00ff,0000,0000</param> </color>The Oberlin Conservatory's =
facilities include 199 Steinway pianos, 150 practice rooms, and a music =
library equal to that of any major university. Oberlin offers intensive =
professional training to aspiring musicians; its students and alumni have =
won prizes in numerous international piano competitions, including the Van =
Cliburn, the Fryderyk Chopin, the Queen Elisabeth, the Arthur Rubinstein, =
the Walter W. Naumburg, the University of Maryland, the Kosciuszko =
Foundation Chopin Piano Competition, and the Concorsco Pianis-Otico =
Internazionale F. Busoni Competition.


	Notable pianists who graduated from Oberlin include concert and recording =
artist and Rubenstein Competition winner Gregory Allen; Jeremy Denk, a =
National Public Radio Young Artist-in-Residence; international recording =
and concert artist and Peabody Conservatory of Music faculty member Marian =
Hahn; and the legendary Natalie Hinderas, one of the first African American =
women to perform as a soloist with a major symphony orchestra (the =
Philadelphia Orchestra).


</flushleft><center><bold>

Winners of the Ninth Annual Oberlin International Piano Competition

</bold></center><bold><flushleft>

</flushleft><center>FIRST PRIZE: 	RACHEL KUDO

</center><flushleft>

</flushleft></bold><flushleft>At 16, <bold>Rachel Naomi Kudo of Northbrook, =
Illinois, </bold>has appeared in concert and concerto performances around =
the world. At 14, she was the youngest artist invited to perform with such =
artists as Michel Baroff, Garrick Ohlssohn, and Yundi Li at the 56th =
International Chopin Festival in Duszniki-Zdroj. Other appearances include =
the 14th International Nagoya Music Festival, the International "New Names =
of the 21st Century" Music Festival in Russia, Chopin=3Fs birth house, =
<italic>Zelazowa Wola </italic>in Poland, the Stradivarius Museum in =
Cremona, the Schubert Club in Minneapolis, and the "Opening Night Gala =
Celebration," honoring Sir Andrew Davis, for the Music Institute of =
Chicago. Rachel has also appeared with the Ars Viva, Everett, Fort Worth, =
and Fukui symphony orchestras, as well as the Nagoya Youth Symphony of =
Japan and the Far Eastern Symphony Orchestra of Russia. 


Among her many awards are first prize in the 1999 53rd All-Japan Student =
Music Concours, along with its Nomura and Tsuzuki awards, first prize in =
the 2000 Czerny-Stefanska International Piano Competition, including its =
prestigious Stefanska Award, and first prizes in the Steinway Society of =
Chicago's Solo and Concerto competitions, both in 2001. Most recently, =
Rachel was named the winner of the 2003 Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Chicago =
Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions; she is scheduled to appear as a soloist =
with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during its 2003-04 season. Rachel is =
also an avid chamber musician, and her piano trio, the Subito Trio, won the =
silver medal in the Junior Division of the 2003 Fischoff National Chamber =
Music Competition. She studies with Emilio del Rosario at the Music =
Institute of Chicago.


</flushleft><center><bold>SECOND PRIZE:	KEVIN KORDI

</bold></center><bold><flushleft>

Kevin Kordi</flushleft></bold>, 16, a student at Glenbrook North High =
School in Illinois, studies piano with Emilio del Rosario at the Music =
Institute of Chicago. Kevin's appearances include six concerts in 2001 as =
soloist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, performing Mendelssohn's =
Piano Concerto in G minor. In 1999, he performed with the 11th Street Trio =
at Boston's Jordan Hall, and in 2001 he performed with Van Cliburn winner =
Jon Nakamatsu at the first Meadowlark Music Festival. In 2002 he soloed =
with the Glenbrook Symphony Orchestra. Kevin has won numerous piano =
competitions, including first place in the primary, junior, and senior =
levels of the Society of American Musicians' competition. In 2002, he won =
the Sherwin Foundation Award at the American Opera Society. In June 2002, =
Kevin won first prize in the Piano Arts of Wisconsin National Concerto =
Competition, performing Beethoven=3Fs First Concerto with the Milwaukee =
Chamber Orchestra. Kevin has participated in master classes with such =
artists as Jon Nakamatsu, Frederic Chiu, Charles Asche, and George Crumb. =
In October 2002, Kevin performed at the World Piano Pedagogical Conference =
in Las Vegas. Recently, he performed George Crumb's <italic>A Little Suite =
for</italic> <italic>Christmas</italic> for the composer in a concert at =
Evanston, Illinois. In his spare time, Kevin enjoys performing in nursing =
homes, schools, and a variety of other places.


<center><bold>THIRD PRIZE:	SORA OH

</bold></center><bold><flushleft>

Eighteen-year-old Sora Oh </flushleft></bold>was born in Seoul, Korea, =
where she<bold> </bold>began studying the piano at the age of 4. She moved =
to Roseville, Minnesota, at 15. In 2001 she won first prize at two =
Minnesota competitions, the Schubert Club Competition in St. Paul and =
Minneapolis' YPSCA Competition. Sora has performed with the Poland National =
Orchestra and the Rumania National Black Sea Orchestra. A student of Lydia =
Artymiw, Sora will enter the Juillard School this fall as a scholarship =
student to study with Jerome Lowenthal and begin work toward her bachelor's =
degree.


###


<flushleft><underline>Media Contact Only</underline>:  	       Marci Janas: =
<color><param>0000,0000,00ff</param><underline>440-775-8328/marci.janas at ober=
lin.edu</underline></color>	7/28/03 #02-mj	






<bold>

</bold>



________________________________________

Marci Janas

Director of Conservatory Media Relations

Oberlin Conservatory of Music

39 West College Street

Oberlin, OH  44074

vox: 440-775-8328

fax: 440-776-3006

marci.janas at oberlin.edu

www.oberlin.edu</flushleft></fontfamily>
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