The jury for the sixth International Piano Competition
for Outstanding Amateurs™ was chaired by John Giordano,
chairman of the jury for the Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition and former music director of the Fort Worth Symphony
Orchestra. Other members included distinguished pianists and music
faculty from local universities, as well as prominent music critics
and other notable industry professionals.
John Giordano, Chairman of the Jury; Music Director, Corpus
Christi Symphony Orchestra; Music Director Emeritus, Fort Worth
Symphony Orchestra; Distinguished Fellow in Music, Texas Christian
University.
Gregory Allen, Professor of Piano, University of Texas at
Austin.
Shields-Collins Bray, Principal Keyboardist, Fort Worth Symphony
Orchestra; Artistic Advisor, Van Cliburn Foundation.
Richard Dyer, Music Critic (retired), The Boston
Globe.
José Feghali, Artist-in-Residence and Professor of Piano, TCU;
Gold Medal Winner, Seventh Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition (1985).
Stanislav Ioudenitch, Associate Professor of Piano and Artistic
Director, International Center for Music at Park University; Gold
Medal Winner, Eleventh Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
(2001).
Yoheved Kaplinsky, Chairperson of the Piano Department, The
Juilliard School; Professor of Piano, TCU.
Jon Nakamatsu, Gold Medal Winner, Tenth Van Cliburn International
Piano Competition (1997).
John Owings, Herndon Professor of Music, TCU.
Pamela Mia Paul, Regents Professor of Music, University of North
Texas.
JURY BIOS
John Giordano has served as the chairman of the
jury of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition since 1973
and chairman of the jury for the Amateur Competition since its
inception in 1999. He is director emeritus of the Fort Worth
Symphony Orchestra, where he served as music director and conductor
for 27 years. Maestro Giordano is also the founder of the Fort
Worth Chamber Orchestra, and under his direction the ensemble
appeared in concerts at Carnegie Hall and in Mexico, Spain, and the
People's Republic of China. As a guest conductor, Maestro Giordano
has appeared with orchestras in Europe, Mexico, South America, and
throughout the United States. Maestro Giordano is a founder of the
Colorado College Summer Music Festival for Young Artists and has
served on the faculties of University of North Texas, Tarleton
State University, and TCU, where he was honored with the title of
Distinguished Fellow in Music. He also holds the title of director
emeritus of the Youth Orchestra of Greater Fort Worth.
Gregory Allen has served as a professor of
piano on the faculty of the Sarah and Ernest Butler School of Music
at The University of Texas at Austin since 1973. In 1980 he claimed
grand prize at the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano
Competition, and took second place at the Queen Elizabeth
Competition in 1978. A noted pianist and composer, Mr. Allen is a
founding member of the ensemble Chamber Soloists of Austin, which
was selected to appear as part of the Kennedy Center's Texas
Festival in 1991, and also served as an artistic ambassador for the
U.S. Information Agency during its tour of South America.
Shields-Collins "Buddy" Bray has been the
principal keyboardist of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra since
1986, and has hosted the orchestra's pre-concert discussion series
since 1993. Often appearing as a soloist, he has performed with the
symphony orchestras of Dallas, Fort Worth, and Jacksonville, the
Buffalo Philharmonic, the Kennedy Center Opera Orchestra, and in
Miguel Harth-Bedoya's The Passion of Tango with the Los Angeles
Philharmonic. In addition to his active performing schedule, Mr.
Bray serves as the Cliburn's artistic advisor.
Richard Dyer was chief music critic for The
Boston Globe for 33 years and is a two-time recipient of the
ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award for distinguished music criticism. A
former Briggs-Copeland Lecturer at Harvard, Mr. Dyer's work appears
in the New Grove Dictionary of American Music, the
Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia of Opera, and the
Encyclopedia Americana. He was recently awarded an
honorary doctorate by the New England Conservatory. Mr. Dyer has
served on the jury of the Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition since 2001, was a member of the press jury for the
Amateur Competition in 1999, 2000, and 2002, and in 2007
transitioned to a member of the Amateur jury.
José Feghali was the gold medalist and winner
of the Chamber Music Prize at the Seventh Van Cliburn International
Piano Competition in 1985. He has been Artist-in-Residence at TCU's
School of Music since 1990. Mr. Feghali has appeared in over 800
concerts worldwide, performing in all of the major cities and in
virtually every state in the nation. Mr. Feghali has been a judge
at several international piano competitions, gives regular master
classes, and is a member of the faculty at both the PianoTexas and
Mimir Chamber Music Festivals.
Stanislav Ioudenitch's strong individuality and
musical conviction won him the gold medal at the Eleventh Van
Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2001, where he also took
home the Steven De Groote Memorial Award for Best Performance of
Chamber Music. He has performed with heralded orchestras and in
major venues across the globe including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy
Center, and Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, among others. A devoted
teacher, Mr. Ioudenitch founded the International Center for Music
and the Youth Conservatory of Music at Park University where he is
artistic director and associate professor of music and piano.
Dr. Yoheved Kaplinsky is the chairperson of the
piano department at The Juilliard School in New York, as well as
professor of piano at TCU in Fort Worth. A native of Israel, she
has appeared throughout the United States as a recitalist, in
chamber music concerts, and with orchestras. Dr. Kaplinsky has
served on the faculties of the Peabody Conservatory and the
Manhattan School of Music and was appointed Artistic Director of
Juilliard's pre-college division in 2007. She frequently
adjudicates in international competitions such as the Cleveland,
Rubinstein, Cliburn, and Tchaikovsky.
A native of California, Jon Nakamatsu was named
the gold medalist of the Tenth Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition in 1997, also taking home the Steven De Groote Memorial
Award for Best Performance of Chamber Music. He is a frequent
performer, appearing in recitals, festivals, and with orchestras
around the world. In 1998, Mr. Nakamatsu was named Debut Artist of
the Year by NPR's Performance Today, and has been profiled
by CBS's Sunday Morning and Reader's Digest
magazine.
John Owings is the Herndon Professor of Music
at TCU, and has served on the juries for major international
competitions including the Casadesus, Cleveland, Gina Bachauer, and
Beethoven in Vienna, Austria. Mr. Owings has appeared as a soloist
with the symphony orchestras of Cleveland, Chicago, Dallas, Denver,
Fort Worth, and Houston; the Boston Pops; the English Chamber
Orchestra; and the National Symphony Orchestras of Colombia and
Peru. He has given recitals in major cities in the United States,
Latin America, Europe, and the Far East and has been a guest artist
at numerous music festivals.
Pamela Mia Paul is a well-known performer and
pedagogue. She has appeared with the world's great orchestras and
given recitals throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. Here
and abroad, her interpretations of both standard repertoire and
20th century piano concertos have garnered consistent critical
praise. As a dedicated teacher, she is in high demand for master
classes and at major summer festivals around the world. Ms. Paul is
currently the Regents Professor of Piano at the University of North
Texas.
