How wonderful is the "Olympics" in the music industry? The closing concert will be "Open Blind Box", and the opening will invite Chinese musicians to participate in the International | Competition | Concert

Not long ago, the Tchaikovsky International Music Competition, known as the "Olympics of the music industry," came to an end.

For 65 years, "Chaisai" has had an inseparable connection with China.

The author watched and recorded the entire process of this international music competition in Russia, both on stage and behind the scenes.

High specification, large scale, and talent output

On the evening of June 19th, the opening concert of the 17th Tchaikovsky International Music Competition was held in the hall of the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory of Music.

Entering this legendary concert hall built in 1901, a profound sense of history fills one's face. On both sides of the antique first floor audience, there are dark sculptures of great musicians such as Tchaikovsky, Gilles, Kogan, Rostropovich, Bartok, Enescu, and Sibelius placed in the aisles. On the walls, there are portraits of 12 composers, including Bach, Beethoven, and Borodin, hanging high.

Many world-class musicians take pride in being able to perform on stage in the "Chaiyuan" hall, while young people who are just starting out may feel nervous under the gaze of music giants and judges below. Under the dual effects of pressure and motivation, they are enduring the test of this stage.

"Chai Yuan" Hall Exterior Tang Ruofu Photograph

In 1958, the first Tchaikovsky International Music Competition was held in the "Chaiyuan" hall. The competition was divided into two groups: piano and violin, reportedly to pay tribute to the composer Tchaikovsky's two famous concertos. The competition that year lasted about 20 days and attracted participants from 22 countries and regions to participate.

In the end, young pianist Van Cleben from the United States won the championship and became famous in the international music scene.

Afterwards, the "Chai Sai" was held every four years. The second competition in 1962 added a cello category, and the third competition in 1966 added a vocal category. The first three competitions established the basic pattern of "firewood competition", which is high specification, large scale, and talent emergence.

The chairman of the organizing committee for the first "Chaisai" was the famous composer Shostakovich, and the chairman of the piano judging committee was Gilles. The judges included three great generals: Negoz, Lev Oberlin, and Richter, all of whom were renowned piano masters in the music industry. Subsequent judges include David Oystrakh, Kogan, Nadia Brangel, Joseph Sigatti, Rostropovich, Piatigorsky, and others, all of whom are active players on the front line of the music stage.

In 2019, "Chaisai" added two new categories: wooden and copper pipes, with a total of six competition categories. That year, 19-year-old Chinese young horn player Zeng Yun won the gold medal in the brass group.

This year's "Chaisai" piano and violin competition will be held in Moscow, while the other four groups will move to St. Petersburg for the start of the competition. A music competition has six competitions under its jurisdiction and is held simultaneously in two locations, with hundreds of participants and nearly a hundred judges. Such a scale is rare in music competitions of the same level. As a result, "Chaisai" has become the "Olympics" in the eyes of many athletes, judges, and fans in international music competitions.

For 65 years, "Chaisai" has produced many world-class musicians. Just taking the champion of the piano category as an example, Ashkenazi of the second edition, Sokolov of the third edition, Pleternev of the sixth edition, Bayer Douglas of the eighth edition, Boris Berezovsky of the ninth edition, Dennis Mazuyev of the eleventh edition, and Daniel Trifonov of the fourteenth edition are all well-known names in the piano industry. Silver and even bronze medalists such as Zheng Mingxun, Lu Gangsky, Li Zhuoyu, Freddie Kempf, and Masao Fujita are also world-renowned musicians, some of whom have even become top conductors.

Liu Shikun's performance at the opening concert was deeply moving, provided by the organizing committee of the competition

The Voice of China in the History of Chaisai

The opening concert of this year's Tchaikovsky International Music Competition was performed by the competition chairman and conductor Valery Dzeyev, who conducted the Marinsky Theater Symphony Orchestra. After the opening of an excerpt from Tchaikovsky's opera "Evgeni Onegin", a tall figure in a suit slowly walked onto the stage. He was the 84 year old Chinese pianist Liu Shikun.

65 years ago, Liu Shikun, who had just turned 19 years old, won a silver medal in the first "firewood competition", achieving a breakthrough of zero for Chinese athletes in this competition. Now, due to physical reasons, Liu Shikun's hands have trembled slightly, but as soon as he touches the black and white keys, they immediately transform into smooth and beautiful musical notes. When the second movement "Ode to the Yellow River" of the piano concerto "The Yellow River" was played, the highly Chinese style melody quickly infected the audience present.

Amidst thunderous applause, Liu Shikun once again took the stage and performed a piano solo "My Motherland". I saw Jejeyev turn around from the podium, staring intently at Liu Shikun. This Chinese famous song, selected from the movie "Shangganling", moved all the audience present, especially the Chinese audience including the author.

When communicating with Liu Shikun after the performance, he told the author that the reason for choosing these two pieces of music is not only because they represent the spiritual connotation of Chinese music, but also because they represent his love for peace.

On the afternoon of June 30th, when Dzeyev presented certificates to piano players at the Pashkov Palace in Moscow, he specially invited Liu Shikun to stand up from the judging panel. He then said the following: "Mr. Liu Shikun won the competition 65 years ago, and he is still dedicated to the stage 65 years later. The young people present should learn from Mr. Liu, who regards music as his lifelong faith and stage as his lifelong pursuit." The audience immediately burst into applause.

The Tchaikovsky International Music Competition has always had an inexplicable bond with musicians from China. At the second "Chai Sai", pianist Yin Chengzong won a silver medal. Nowadays, these two pianists in their 80s are still dedicated to the music field and active on stage. Their achievements in the "Chaisai" during their youth have yet to be broken by the Chinese people, and their persistent pursuit of music has also infected generations of Chinese musicians.

Since the first competition in 1958, more than ten musicians from China have won awards in the "firewood competition". In addition to Liu Shikun and Yin Chengzong, there are also violinist Xue Wei and singer Yuan Chenye.

Photo by Tang Ruofu at the scene of the "Chai Sai" violin competition

There are also Chinese musicians on the judging panel of "Chaisai". Li Mingqiang, who had previously served as the Vice Dean of Shanghai Conservatory of Music, served as a judge in the 11th "Chaisai" Piano Competition in 1998. He favored and praised the player Dennis Mazuyev, who won the championship of that competition. Mazuyev has great respect for Li Mingqiang, and after he served as the chairman of the "Chaisai" piano judging committee, he repeatedly invited Li Mingqiang to serve as a judge.

This year's "Chai Sai" can be said to have a very strong color among Chinese judges, including Liu Shikun and Li Mingqiang, with more than ten judges from China appearing in the judging seats of each group.

Winner's Concert at the Zariyadye Concert Hall in Moscow Photo by Tang Ruofu

The winner's concert of "opening blind boxes"

Throughout this year's "Chai Sai", apart from Liu Shikun's touching performance at the opening concert, the most impressive performance for me was undoubtedly the last two winners' concerts. These two concerts are a process of "opening blind boxes" for the performers, as well as a "special forces" style physical test.

In fact, as a competition that nurtures top performers, in the past decade or so, not only have the contestants been under heavy pressure to perform, but the dense schedule has also made the judges who listen to the competition for ten hours a day feel exhausted. Even if they win an award, the contestants dare not slack off at all during the award ceremony, because there is still the ultimate test ahead - two winners' concerts.

As the competition was held in Moscow and St. Petersburg, in the early morning of June 30th, after the ranking was determined, the contestants, judges, conductors, and bands from St. Petersburg arrived in Moscow at dawn, covered in dust. They immediately began preparing for the first winner's concert to be held that evening at the Zariadiya Concert Hall.

The performance lasted from 7:30 pm until early morning, and was performed by the Marinsky Theater Symphony Orchestra under the command of Dzeyev. Less than a few hours after the concert, the drowsy cast members quickly transferred by plane and train to the Malinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, immediately preparing for the second winner's concert.

The tickets for this highly anticipated concert were sold out early on. The entire concert lasted for 5 and a half hours, with two intermissions of about 15 minutes. The concert not only lasted for a long time, but also included the program list, which was announced by the organizing committee on the spot. It was a true "blind box" concert.

At the Winners Concert held in St. Petersburg, the performances of two Chinese contestants received great acclaim: baritone Hong Zhenxiang sang the aria from Giordano's opera "Andrei Chenier", and horn player Jin Zhicheng played the second movement of Griel's "Horn Concerto in B-flat major".

The closing ceremony of the winner's concert held at the Malinsky Theatre, photographed by Tang Ruofu

Looking back at this competition, a total of 8 Chinese players won honors: Jin Zhicheng won the silver medal in the brass group, Luo Chaowen and Hong Zhenxiang won the bronze medal in the violin and vocal groups respectively, Jiang Yiying won the fourth place in the violin group, Mao Xuanyi won the fourth place in the piano group, Ning Yuening and Xie Zonglin won the fifth and sixth places in the woodwind group respectively, and the bass Hou Liwei won the position in the vocal group.

In addition to watching the competition, the author has witnessed many athletes develop from opponents on the field to friends off the field. This is not so much the charm of music as the application of the art of listening and communication that music professionals must master in their daily lives. Over a period of 15 days, young musicians from different countries and regions gathered together under the influence of music, jointly creating memories that belonged to them and the audience.