Jury

People’s Artist of Russia (2011)

Born in Irkutsk in 1975, Denis Matsuev graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied with Alexei Nasedkin and Sergei Dorensky.

He is one of Russia’s most acclaimed and in-demand pianists, appearing at the world’s top venues. His artistic partners include the New York, Berlin, and London Philharmonic Orchestras; the symphony orchestras of Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles; the Orchestre de Paris; the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra; and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. He has performed with Valery Gergiev, Yuri Temirkanov, Zubin Mehta, Paavo Järvi, Antonio Pappano, Charles Dutoit, Semyon Bychkov, Alan Gilbert, among others.

A passionate advocate for regional concert life, he regularly performs across Russia. He is Artistic Director of major festivals and competitions: Stars on Baikal (since 2004), Crescendo (since 2005), Astana Piano Passion (since 2012), and the Grand Piano Competition (since 2016). Since 2008, he has led the New Names Foundation named after Irina Voronova.

His recordings appear on RCA, Mariinsky, Sony, Deutsche Grammophon and others.

He is a member of the Presidential Council for Culture and Art of the Russian Federation, a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, and a State Prize laureate (2009). He holds the Russian Federation’s Order of Honour (2016) and the Lev Nikolaev Gold Medal (2019).

He chaired the piano jury of the International Tchaikovsky Competition (2019, 2023), led the 1st Rachmaninoff International Competition (2022), and is Artistic Director of the Symphony of Yamal International Competition (2024).

Born in Shanghai in 1936, Ming-Qiang Li studied at the Leningrad Conservatory under Alfred Wittenberg and Tatiana Kravchenko.

He is a laureate of the B. Smetana International Competition and the Prague Spring Festival (1957), the George Enescu International Piano Competition in Bucharest (1st Prize, 1958), and the International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (1960).

Li has performed throughout Asia, Europe, North America, and Oceania.

He has served on the juries of many major international piano competitions, including those in Beijing, Montreal, Hong Kong, Warsaw (Chopin), Fort Worth (Van Cliburn), Bucharest (Enescu and Lipatti), St. Petersburg (Prokofiev), Tel Aviv (Arthur Rubinstein), Hamamatsu, and the International Tchaikovsky Competition, among others.

Since 1989 he has given lectures and masterclasses at top universities, conservatories, and music schools across mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Europe, Australia, and the United States.

Li has been Professor of Piano at the Shanghai Conservatory since 1983 and served as its Vice President from 1984 to 1989 He is a lifetime member of the American Liszt Society and an Honorary Fellow of Trinity College London.

His recordings have been released on the Electrecord (Romania), Supraphon (Czech Republic), Alpha Omega (Hong Kong), and China Records labels.

Born in Leningrad in 1968, Maxim Mogilevsky debuted at age 13 with the Moscow Philharmonic under Dmitri Kitayenko. He graduated from the Moscow Conservatory under Lev Naumov, then studied with Bella Davidovich at Juilliard and took lessons from Martha Argerich.

From 1992, he was a student and assistant of Alexander Toradze at Indiana University (South Bend).

He won international piano competitions in Tokyo (1989), UNISA in Pretoria (1992), and Porto (1995), and received the Angel Award (Edinburgh Festival, 1997) and the Rachmaninoff Foundation Prize.

Mogilevsky has performed in major halls across Europe, Asia, the Americas, and Australia. He appeared with the New York, Seattle, Rotterdam, and Mariinsky orchestras, the Orchestre National de France, the Russian National Orchestra, “Novaya Rossiya,” and the Svetlanov State Symphony Orchestra. He has collaborated with Valery Gergiev, Mikhail Pletnev, Leif Segerstam, Paavo Järvi, and Yuri Bashmet.

He was Visiting Professor at the Oberlin Conservatory (1996–2016), and taught at the Eastman and New England Conservatories.

As Artistic Consultant at the Jiangsu Performing Arts Center (Nanjing), he brought Zubin Mehta, Valery Gergiev, Denis Matsuev, Anna Netrebko, and major orchestras to China.

Now Professor at Zhejiang University of Media and Communications and Guest Professor at Shizuoka University, he regularly gives masterclasses in the U.S., Japan, Colombia, Belgium, and Spain.

He holds China’s “Best Foreign Expert” title and the “Thousand Talents” Government Award.

Born in Cuba, Leonel Morales has lived in Spain since 1991 He studied at the University of Havana under Frank Fernández (a student of Victor Merzhanov) and later in Weimar with Jacob Lateiner. He also trained with Mikhail Voskresensky and served as an assistant to Aquiles Delle Vigne at the International Summer Academy in Salzburg.

He is a winner of the Guerrero Foundation Competition, the Teresa Carreño International Piano Competition, and the Jaén International Piano Competition. He was also a prizewinner at the Santa Cecilia International Competition in Porto.

Morales has performed with all of Spain’s leading orchestras, as well as with the National Orchestra of Portugal, the RAI National Symphony Orchestra (Italy), and the symphony orchestras of Hamburg, Ljubljana, Dallas, and Houston. He has also appeared with the Philharmonic Orchestras of Warsaw and Dresden and with the Virtuosi of the Berlin Philharmonic. With the National Orchestra of Spain and the State Symphony Orchestra of Mexico, he toured the United States, performing at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and Lincoln Center.

He has collaborated with renowned conductors such as Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Mikhail Yurovsky, George Pehlivanian, Alexander Rahbari, Jacques Mercier, and Antoni Wit.

Since 2018 he has been an exclusive artist of Yangtze River (China), and since 2024 exclusive representative of Grotrian-Steinweg in Spain.

Morales is Professor at the International Summer Academy in Salzburg, Alfonso X El Sabio University (Madrid), and the Forum Musikae Advanced School of Music (Madrid).

He is Artistic Director and founder of the Maria Herrero International Piano Competition (Granada), the Spain International Competition for Composer-Pianists (WFIMC, Madrid), and the “Leonel Morales and Friends” music festival in Granada.

Pianist and pedagogue Hideko Kobayashi was born in Tokyo. She studied piano with Nobuko Funayama and Hiroko Nakamura, and later in Russia with Evgeny Mogilevsky, Assanetta Egisseyan, and Boris Romanov, before enrolling at the Moscow Conservatory, where she studied with Lev Naumov.

She completed her musical education at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna under Noël Flores. Upon returning to Japan, she earned a degree in philology from Keio University in Tokyo.

She taught at Ferris University in Yokohama and currently serves as Professor and Head of the Piano Department at Tokoha University College in Shizuoka.

Several of her students have become prizewinners at international and national piano competitions.

Kobayashi has frequently served on the juries of major competitions, including the Emil Gilels Memorial Competition (Odesa), the A. Artobolevskaya Young Pianists’ Competition (Moscow), “Music and Earth” in Sofia, the Ricard Viñes International Youth Competition (Lleida, Spain), the A. Nasedkin Young Pianists’ Competition (Yaroslavl, where she chaired the jury), the XVII International Tchaikovsky Competition (Moscow), the Symphony of Yamal Competition, and the 4th Grand Piano Competition. She has also been a jury member for the Kawai Competition in Japan.

She has performed in recital, chamber ensembles, and with orchestra in Austria, Japan, Russia, and Bulgaria.

Vladimir Viardo graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1974, where he studied piano with Lev Naumov.

While still a student, he became a laureate of the Long-Thibaud Competition in France (1971) and went on to win the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth (USA, 1973), which launched his rapid rise as a concert pianist.

Since 1988 Viardo has resided in Dallas and New York and has maintained an active international concert career. He teaches at the Dallas International Music Academy and previously served as a professor at the Moscow Conservatory (1997–1999). He is listed among the most distinguished piano professors in the United States. His masterclasses are in high demand around the world.

He has an extensive concert repertoire, performing dozens of piano concertos with orchestra as well as solo monographic recital programs. He is frequently invited to serve on juries of international piano competitions.

Viardo has appeared with many of the world’s leading orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (London), the Moscow and St. Petersburg Philharmonics, the Warsaw National Philharmonic, the Israel and Prague Philharmonic Orchestras, the Atlanta Symphony, and others.

He has performed across Russia, the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Africa, in major concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Salle Pleyel, and the Concertgebouw.

Viardo has worked with renowned conductors including Zubin Mehta, Lorin Maazel, Sir Colin Davis, Walter Susskind, Kirill Kondrashin, Vladimir Spivakov, and Maxim Shostakovich.

His recordings have been released by Melodiya, Pro Arte, and Nonesuch.

Born in 1966 in Vietnam, Ta Quang Dong holds a doctorate in musicology. He studied at the Vietnam National Academy of Music under Tran Thu Ha, then continued his training at the Moscow Conservatory with Nina Emelyanova and Viktor Bunin, and at the Gnessin Russian Academy of Music with Boris Berlin, Tamara Rusanova, and Irina Susidko.

He has performed successfully as a soloist and chamber musician in Russia, Vietnam, and the United States. His performances have been broadcast on national and international radio and television.

Ta Quang Dong is a co-founder of several international piano competitions and festivals in Vietnam.

He previously served as Vice Rector of the Hue Academy of Music and as Rector of the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory. His students have won numerous awards at international and national piano competitions in Russia, the United States, France, Serbia, Austria, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, and Vietnam.

Since 2019 he has served as Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of Vietnam.

People’s Artist of Russia (2005), People’s Artist of the Republic of Bashkortostan (2023)

Born in 1958 in Bashkortostan, Vladimir Ovchinnikov graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied under Alexey Nasedkin.

He is a laureate of several international competitions, including the Montreal International Piano Competition (1980) and the VII International Tchaikovsky Competition (1982). He won the Leeds International Piano Competition (UK, 1987), which marked his triumphant London debut.

Ovchinnikov has performed solo and with leading orchestras in Russia, Europe, and the United States. He has appeared with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (London), the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and the symphony orchestras of Chicago, Montreal, Zurich, and Tokyo. He has also worked with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and the Svetlanov State Symphony Orchestra of Russia.

He has collaborated with renowned conductors including Valery Gergiev, James Conlon, Valery Polyansky, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Yevgeny Svetlanov, Sir Georg Solti, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Yuri Simonov, Murad Annamamedov, Alexander Dmitriev, and Maxim Shostakovich.

Ovchinnikov has taken part in prestigious festivals such as the Edinburgh and Cheltenham Festivals and the BBC Proms.

From 1993 to 1996 he taught piano at the Royal Northern College of Music (UK). From 2011 to 2016 he served as Director of the Central Music School in Moscow. Since 1996 he has taught at the Moscow Conservatory, where he is now a professor. He is also Professor and Head of the Piano Department at the Gnessin Russian Academy of Music.

He serves on the juries of major international piano competitions, including the Vianna da Motta (Lisbon), Ferruccio Busoni (Italy), Paderewski (Poland), the Grand Piano Competition, and the International Tchaikovsky Competition.

His recordings have been released by leading labels such as Chandos, Olympia, and EMI (five albums).

Honored Artist of Russia (2000), Knight of the Order “For Merit in Culture and Art” (2024)

A graduate of the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied under Alexey Nasedkin, Valery Pyasetsky has been a professor since 2009

He has taught at the Central Music School (CMS) affiliated with the Moscow Conservatory since 1984 In 2016 he was appointed Director of CMS, and in 2022 became Rector of the Central Music School – Academy of Performing Arts.

As a concert pianist, he has performed throughout the major cities of the USSR, as well as in Austria, Hungary, Germany, Serbia, France, Switzerland, Japan, and elsewhere. He is a respected chamber musician and for many years performed in a duo with People’s Artist of the RSFSR Mikhail Khomitser. He has also collaborated with People’s Artists of Russia Vladimir Ivanov and Marine Yashvili.

Pyasetsky is a renowned pedagogue who has trained a generation of charismatic pianists recognized on the international stage. His students have won awards at Russian and international competitions nearly 150 times. Among them is Denis Matsuev—winner of the XI International Tchaikovsky Competition (1998), People’s Artist of Russia, and laureate of multiple State Prizes.

He serves on the juries of many prestigious international competitions and regularly gives masterclasses as a guest professor, notably within the River of Talents program—a major nationwide initiative.

Ick-Choo Moon has lived in South Korea, the United States, and Canada. He studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and with György Sebők at Indiana University in Bloomington, where he earned his bachelor's and master's degrees. He later received his Doctor of Musical Arts from The Juilliard School, where he worked closely with Sascha Gorodnitzki.

He is a laureate of numerous competitions, including the Montreal and Geneva International Music Competitions and the Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition at Juilliard. In 1989 as a recipient of the William Petschek Award, he gave his debut recital at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center.

As a soloist, he debuted with the Minnesota Orchestra under Stanislaw Skrowaczewski and has performed with the symphony orchestras of Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, the National Arts Centre Orchestra (Ottawa), the Calgary Philharmonic, the Leningrad Philharmonic Academic Symphony Orchestra, the KBS Radio Orchestra, the Korean National Symphony, and the Seoul Philharmonic. He has appeared in recital throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, Japan, and South Korea.

He has participated in festivals in Korea, MusicAlp in France, and the Amalfi Music Festival in Italy.

Moon has taught at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he chaired the piano department, and at the University of Southern California, as well as at the Brevard Music Center (North Carolina) and the Chautauqua Institution (New York). He is currently Honorary Professor of Piano at Seoul National University.

He has served on juries of major international competitions, including the Franz Liszt Competition in Budapest, the XVII International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, and competitions in Cleveland, Calgary, Seoul, Ljubljana, and Hamamatsu.

Honored Art Worker of Russia (1998)

Born in 1939 in Moscow, Vladimir Tropp graduated from the Gnessin State Musical and Pedagogical Institute and completed postgraduate studies under Theodor Gutman.

He is a laureate of the George Enescu International Piano Competition in Bucharest (1970) and has performed widely as a soloist and chamber musician. He has appeared at major international festivals in Finland, Italy, the UK, China, and Russia.

Since 1963 he has taught at the Gnessin Institute (now the Gnessin Russian Academy of Music), where he chaired the Piano Department from 1997 to 2023 Since 2002 he has also been Professor of Piano at the Moscow Conservatory. Among his many students are prizewinners of prestigious international competitions and professors at the Moscow Conservatory, Gnessin Academy, and conservatories around the world.

He regularly gives masterclasses in Russia, Europe, Japan, China, South Korea, and elsewhere.

A musician of broad scholarly interests, Tropp has long studied the legacy of Sergei Rachmaninoff. He has conducted archival research in Russia and abroad and published several articles on the composer’s life and works. He has also contributed to television films on Rachmaninoff in the UK and Russia.

He is Vice President of the Rachmaninoff Society (Moscow), serves on its Board and Academic Council, and is a board member of the Moscow Musical Society and an honorary council member of the Scriabin Society of America.

Tropp frequently serves on the juries of international piano competitions.