Leeds International Piano Competition

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The Leeds International Piano Competition is a major international piano contest held in Leeds, England, conducted every three years. It began in 1961, founded by Marion, Countess of Harewood, Dame Fanny Waterman and Roslyn Lyons, with the first competition in 1963. The event quickly became well known, producing prizewinners who would go on to have influential careers.

Fanny Waterman led the competition as chair and artistic director until 2015. From then, Paul Lewis and Adam Gatehouse were co-artistic directors, with Gatehouse later taking the role alone and Imogen Cooper chairing the Jury in 2021.

The competition starts with an international first round; the 2021 edition was held virtually because of Covid. In 2024, the first round was held in six locations around the world, attracting a record 366 applications. The second round and the semi-finals take place in the Great Hall of the University of Leeds. The concerto finals for the 2024 edition were held at St George’s Hall in Bradford because Leeds Town Hall was undergoing refurbishment.

The University of Leeds is the principal partner, and the competition has been broadcast by the BBC since 1966. In 2018 it streamed live online for the first time via medici.tv, helping audiences reach a global scale. In 2024 the broadcasts drew millions of views across several platforms, including BBC Four, BBC Radio 3, medici.tv, Amadeus.tv, Classic FM and Mezzo.tv.

Many famous musicians have been connected with the competition. The first prize winner in 1963 was Michael Roll. Notable past finalists and winners include Mitsuko Uchida, Sir Andras Schiff (1975), Radu Lupu, Murray Perahia, Peter Donohoe (1981), Louis Lortie (1984), Lars Vogt (1990), Denis Kozhukhin (2006) and Louis Schwizgebel (2012), with Sofya Gulyak becoming the first woman to win the first prize in 2009.

In 2018 the competition updated its prize structure to better support winners’ careers. The new package includes mentoring by Paul Lewis and other artists, artist management with Askonas Holt, a Warner Classics recording deal, and a schedule of international engagements. The festival now also offers masterclasses, talks, educational activities, and public piano events such as The Leeds Piano Trail around the city.

Orchestral partnerships have also grown. In 2019 the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (RLPO) joined for the 20th edition in 2021, with the RLPO Prize awarded for the best performance of a contemporary work. After the 2021 prize, the RLPO commissioned a piano concerto from composer Eleanor Alberga.