Winners announced in Bad Kissingen
The 2025 Kissinger KlavierOlymp has concluded in Bad Kissingen, with Alon Kariv of Israel receiving first prize from the expert jury. Dmitry Yudin of Russia won second prize and the audience award, while Elia Cecino of Italy took third prize.
The four-day event, held from 2 to 5 October in the Rossini Hall of Germany’s best-known spa town, brought together six pianists from five countries: Kariv, Yudin, Cecino, Eva Gevorgyan (Armenia), Amiri Harewood (United Kingdom), and Curtis Phill Hsu (United States). Each performed a solo recital before an audience and a five-member jury composed of Thomas Ahnert, Manuel Brug, Ulrich Hauschild, Sonia Simmenauer, and Alexander Steinbeis.
A selective competition linked to Kissinger Sommer
Founded in 2003, the Kissinger KlavierOlymp is a compact but highly regarded competition that serves as an autumnal encore to the Kissinger Sommer festival. Only six pianists aged 27 or under—each already a prizewinner elsewhere—are invited to take part. The winners not only receive prizes from the jury and audience but also gain concert engagements during the following year’s Kissinger Sommer, often performing in the Max Littmann Hall, one of Europe’s most renowned concert venues.
A record of discovering future stars
Over two decades, the competition has become known as a launch pad for rising pianists, with former laureates including Kirill Gerstein, Martin Helmchen, Behzod Abduraimov, Kit Armstrong, Igor Levit, Alice Sara Ott, Anna Vinnitskaja, and Herbert Schuch—all of whom later established major international careers.
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