PHOTO / MASASHIGE OGATA

Chairperson of the Judgment Committe HIROKO Nakamura

International music competitions are extremely interesting occasions since they are concerned not merely with music but also have an important role to play in close linkage with develpments in the modern global age. In today's affluent society there is a constant demand for new forms of stimulation. In music to, people are not content to be moved solely on a musical level but tend to look for some additional factor. In the midst of the flood of information with which we are confronted, where should we look for that incomparable sense of being moved to the depths of our being that can be generated by music alone? Competitions have become valuable starting points for preserving, cultivating and transmitting that unchanging experience of being emoitonally stirred which is the preserve of the Wsestern classical music that we hold so dear. As we greet this rigorously selected group of outstandingly gifted young people from all corners of the world, what can we expect to hear from them and what thoughts will arise in our minds as we listen to them? As well as offering my best withes for the good fortune of these young musicians assembled here in Hamamatsu, I should like to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone in Hamamatsu who has porvided their generous support for ensuring the success of this event and for presenting the participants in this event with such a wonderful opportunity to extend their talents.

Mayor of Hamamatsu City KITAWAKI Yasuyuki

I Iam deeply gratified to have the 5th Hamamatsu International Piano Competition this year, which started as a commemorative project for the 80th anniversary of the foundation of Hamamatsu City in 1991, and it has been held every 3 years since then. Because of kind cooperation and understandings by many people, I truly appreciate to have been able to continue to hold such an international cultural event. There have been 319 applications from 47 countries and 1 region this time, and 100 contestants were selected to participate in the competition by document screening review, and strict auditions which were held in New York, Paris, Vienna, Moscow and Hamamatsu. We are inviting Ms. Hiroko Nakamura as a chairperson of the judgment committee, and 12 other internationally active and acknowledged performers and professors as jury members. Hamamatsu International Piano Competition is the only piano competition in Asia that belongs to World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC), and it has been gaining recognition both domestically and internationally, and has become a gateway to success for young pianists. The level of the contestants has been superior each time, and I am convinced that is because this competition to have been accepted in the world. The aims of the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition are to give opportunities for young pianists whose purposes are to be active globally to display their daily hard work, to promote music culture in the world, and to encourage international cultural exchange. We will continue to make this competition be the main project as “City Development of Music”. I genuinely hope that all the participants will be able to exhibit their best performance at the competition.