Who is Frederic Chiu?
Frederic Chiu is a young musician (age 33) who makes his living playing the piano. Boring, you say? Not so! He gets to travel all over the world doing this, and as a result of his musical gift, he has participated in and has been awarded prizes from many piano competitions, including the 1993 Van Cliburn International Pinao Competition, where he was a semifinalist. Not only does Mr. Chiu play the piano, he also composes music of his own, and has even made several recordings that you can buy in music stores right here in Fort Worth!
Mr. Chiu says the following about himself:
"I started taking piano lessons when I was six years old. It was my parents' idea, and they made me practice every day; even though sometimes I didn't feel like practicing. I played a lot of different classical music when I was young: Mozart, Bach, Clementi, etc. ...I did a lot of things besides music though too - Little League baseball, basketball, Boy Scouts; I even took Kung Fu lessons! I was a rather shy kid ...but I liked playing the piano, since I did pretty well."
What is the Van Cliburn Foundation?
The Van Cliburn Foundation is an organization that was formed in 1961 for the purpose of sponsoring an international piano competition to be held in Fort 'Worth every four years. The Foundation was named after Van Cliburn, who brought honor to our country in 1958 when he won the 1st Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow, Russia, formerly of the Soviet Union. The 1st Tchiakovsky Competition was held during the time of the "Cold War" between the Soviet Union and the United States; this was naot a "war" inwhich men actually fought each other, but rather a time when the United States and the Soviet Union did not trust each other. These two countries were competing against each other and trying to be more powerful than the other, and not communicating as they do today. Mr. Cliburn's victory at the Tchiakovsky Competition served to prove the power of the arts to bring unity between the United States and the Sviet Union, even in the midst of their rivalry. A famous American tradition, the tickertape parade, was held in New York City for hundreds of thousands of people to honor Van Cliburn's accomplishment.
In May and June of 1997, the Tenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition was held in Fort Worth. It brought thirty-five talented young pianists from all over the world to Fort Worth, and focused international attention on these fine musicians and on classical music as a whole. The field of competitors was eventually narrowed down to just six finalists, who each played two concerto's with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. At the end of these performances, medals were awarded to the top three pianists: Gold, Silver, and Bronze. The Tenth Competition Bronze medal went to Aviram Reichert, who is from Israel. The Tenth Competition Silver went to Yakov Kasman, who lives in Moscow, Russia. The Tenth Competition 's Golf Medalist was Jon Nakamatsu, who is from San Jose, California. Jon's victory was special since it marks the first time in sixteen years that an American has won the top prize.
Van Cliburn's success at the 1st Tchiakovsky International Piano Competition was more than just a personal victory. It served to create interest in classical music worldwide, and more directly was the cause for the creation of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, which draws international attention to young musicians and helps them to further their careers as the musicians of tommorrow.