Elemér Balázs awarded this year's Yamaha Scholarship
Out of fifteen applicants, the jury selected the winner, who will receive a support of 2000 euros.
According to the agreement between the Yamaha Music Europe Foundation and the Liszt Academy, the foundation awards a scholarship to a student of the Academy every year, each academic year to a different instrumentalist. In the 2023/2024 academic year, classical piano students were eligible to apply for the 2000-euro support.
A total of 15 candidates submitted their application for the two-stage competition. In the preliminary selection, the applicants presented a 15-minute program of their choice, and in the final, they were required to fill a 25-minute program time.
One interesting aspect of the competition is that the final takes place in the Grand Hall of the Academy, which is known to require pianists to mobilize different resources and presents a greater challenge. The opportunity to perform in this venue is rarely afforded to students. Another special feature of the competition is that it takes place on the exceptional Yamaha CFX concert grand piano, which was initially provided for use by the manufacturer to the university and then, after three years, the ownership of the instrument was transferred to the institution.
Elemér Balázs Jr (photo: Balázs Mádai )
The members of the jury that presided over the first round included Attila Némethy, András Kemenes, and Marouan Ben Abdallah, with Kálmán Dráfi serving as the chairman.
Gábor Ludmány, Sébastien Somorjai-Pellet, Elemér Balázs, Botond Farkas, and Ildikó Rozsonits advanced to the final round. The jury, augmented by department head Gábor Farkas and László Borbély, faced a challenging task due to the high-quality performances. Ultimately, they awarded the prize to Elemér Balázs.
Zoltán Závoti, representing the Austrian branch of Yamaha, attended both events.
Elemér Balázs Jr., a Junior Prima award-winning pianist, is currently a master's student at the Liszt Academy, majoring in classical piano.
