Ilya Yakushev (Piano)
Ilya Yakushev, a fresh and exciting new presence in the piano world, has many
awards and honors to his credit, and has performed at major venues on three
continents.
As first prize and Gold Medal winner at the 2005 World Piano Competition in
Cincinnati, Ohio, he toured the USS in the spring of 2006 and presented a solo
recital at Alice Tully Hall in April 2007. As Grand Prize Winner of the 2004
Mannes College Concerto Competition, Mr Yakushev made his Tully Hall debut as
soloist in Prokofievґs Third Piano Concerto with the Mannes Orchestra under the
baton of Metropolitan Opera conductor Paul Nadler, a performance that was
subsequently broadcast on WQXR-FM.
Mr Yakushev has further proven his abilities as a concert
soloist by organising and producing three concerts at Mannes, accompanied by
orchestras consisting of Mannes students and alumni who expressed their regard
for his talents by participating as volunteers. In the spring of 2005, he
performed a concert featuring Prokofievґs Second Concerto and Beethovenґs Third
Concerto. In March 2006, he performed three piano concerti in one evening:
Saint-Saлnsґ Second Concerto, Ravelґs Concerto in G and Prokofievґs First
Concerto, in a concert conducted by his teacher at Mannes, legendary pianist
Vladimir Feltsman. In February 2007 he went one step further, performing four
concerti in one evening in his final performance as a student at Mannes, also
conducted by Maestro Feltsman.
Last season, Mr Yakushev received enthusiastic critical acclaim
for his bravura performances of Prokofievґs Second Piano Concerto at the
Arkansas Symphonyґs opening concert in September 2006, and of Prokofievґs First
and Fourth Piano Concerti at the Prokofiev Festival of the San Francisco
Symphony under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. He attracted
international attention through his European tour in December 2006, presenting
solo recitals at such venues as the Bechstein Center (Berlin), the Musikverein
(Vienna) and the Rubinstein Academy (Dusseldorf). He also toured Southeast Asia,
performing in Singapore and Malaysia. In past seasons, he has performed in
various prestigious venues including Alice Tully Hall (New York), the Glinka
Philharmonic Hall (St Petersburg), Victoria Hall (Singapore), the Weill Recital
Hall at Carnegie Hall (New York), the Davies Symphony Hall (San Francisco) and
the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts (Seoul, South Korea).
Mr Yakushev received his first award at age twelve as a
prize-winner of the Young Artistsґ Concert Competition in his native St
Petersburg. In 1997, he received the Mayor of St Petersburgґs Young Talents
award, and in both 1997 and 1998 he won first prize at the Donostia Hiria
International Piano Competition in San Sebastian, Spain. In 1998, he received
Russiaґs Award for Excellence in Performance, presented to him by the Minister
of Culture of the Russian Federation in Moscow. Most recently, Mr Yakushev
became a recipient of the prestigiousGawon International Music Societyґs Award
in Seoul, South Korea. In addition to his performing career, Mr Yakushev is
presently serving as Executive Director of the International Keyboard Institute
and Festival at Mannes, founded and directed by Jerome Rose, a position he has
held since 2000.
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