Inaugural concert of the 19th Chopin Competition

The inauguration of the Competition is a special event – solemn and ceremonial, filled with a whole range of emotions heralding this unique and noble competition, which will captivate the entire music world for the next three weeks. 

In the past, this unique evening has been an opportunity to present outstanding works of Polish and world music literature interpreted by such great artists as Artur Rubinstein, Henryk Szeryng, Wanda Wiłkomirska, Nelson Freire, with the National Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Witold Rowicki, Stanisław Wisłocki, Jerzy Katlewicz, Kazimierz Kord, Antoni Wit and Jacek Kaspszyk (only once did the Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra perform, conducted by Jerzy Maksymiuk). The inaugural concerts featuring Martha Argerich, the winner of the 1965 competition, have become legendary.

The 19th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition will be inaugurated by four of its winners, who will perform with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Andrzej Boreyko. Bruce Liu will perform Camille Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 5 in F major, while Yulianna Avdeeva and Garrick Ohlsson will perform Francis Poulenc’s Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra. Yulianna Avdeeva, Bruce Liu, Garrick Ohlsson and Dang Thai Son will meet in the Concerto for 4 Pianos by Johann Sebastian Bach. The opening gala will begin with Fryderyk Chopin's Polonaise in A major in an orchestral version.

We invite you to watch the streaming of the Inaugural Concert on the YouTube channel of the Fryderyk Chopin Institute.