‘It was unforgettable’ – 25-year-old Canadian wins prestigious Leeds piano competition

23 September 2024, 12:57

Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, a 25-year-old pianist from Canada who has just won first prize in the 2024 Leeds International Piano Competition, says he “tried to keep the ranking and the prizes out of mind and just focus on the music”.

25-year-old Jaeden Izik-Dzurko from Canada has just won the Leeds International Piano Competition – one of the classical music world’s most prestigious prizes.

He was bestowed the trophy after delivering a winning performance of Brahms’ Piano Concerto No.2 played alongside the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra under Domingo Hindoyan, at St George’s Hall in Bradford.

After winning, Jaeden told Classic FM: “I don’t think I was really able to fully process it in the moment. There was such a huge build-up to the event and the final announcement, but now I’m really overjoyed and humbled to be included in the list of laureates that also includes some of my own personal musical heroes and artists that have inspired me since I was a young aspiring pianist.”

Jaeden beat out four other pianists in the final: Junyan Chen (China), who came in second place, Khanh Nhi Luong (Vietnam) who came in third, plus Kai-Min Chang (Taiwan) and Julian Trevelyan (United Kingdom).

Jaeden described the experience of playing with the RLPO as “unforgettable”.

“They sounded so phenomenal on stage. And much of the writing in Brahms’ concerto is symphonic, so I often felt as though I was enjoying a beautiful performance by the Philharmonic from the stage, from a perfect vantage point. And Maestro Hindoyan was so wonderful to collaborate with, especially in a high-stakes, high pressure situation like this one, he was so gracious and accommodating of all my interpretive requests.”

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Jaeden Izik-Dzurko wins Leeds International Piano Competition 2024 with Brahms Concerto No. 2

The Leeds was co-founded in 1963 by renowned piano teacher Dame Fanny Waterman. Held every three years, the competition is open to pianists under 30 from around the world.

Jaeden walks away with not only a prize of £30,000 and the Dame Fanny Waterman Gold Medal, but also a package of concerts with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, a debut at Wigmore Hall, and recital tours across the UK and internationally.

“I don’t think any pianist who enters an international competition completely excludes the possibility of winning, but my frame of mind going into it was simply to hopefully share my music with the audiences and to communicate something special to them,” Jaeden added.

“I was trying as best as I could to keep the ranking and the prizes out of mind and just focus on the music that I wanted to share.”

Jaeden is a graduate of the Juilliard School in New York, and has a Master’s degree from the University of British Columbia. In 2021, he was named one of ‘30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30’ by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).

In May he won the 2024 Montreal International Music Competition, taking home more than $150,000 (£83,200).

“I would say the prize money is useful to anyone starting out in their career, but it’s really not the primary end of these competitions,” Jaeden said. “My goal whenever I enter competitions, is simply a desire to share my music with more people and to gain more experience as a performer and to become a better artist.”

Jaeden has been making headlines around the world after his win, a reality he describes as “a little daunting”.

“I never had an aspiration to become famous or are very well-known in that sense. All I can hope is that my music touches the listeners and that they enjoy my performance of Brahms’ great masterpiece.”

Dame Imogen Cooper, chair of the jury, said: “Our aim was to find not just the finest pianist, but the most complete musician, and with Jaeden we have achieved that. He demonstrated exceptional artistic maturity and imagination, remarkable technical command, and a profound ability to captivate and transport the audience through his storytelling and poetry throughout the competition, culminating in a truly unforgettable final performance.”