Entry Information

Repertoire Requirements

Works must be prepared and performed from memory for all rounds.

Heats: A video recording of one work with a total performance time of up to 15 minutes. This must be a recorded performance made in 2025, filmed in a single take and without edit. The video recording and supporting documentation must be uploaded to the Sydney Eisteddfod Entrant Portal by 4:00 PM Monday, 28 April 2025.

Semi-Final: Sunday, 1 June 2025 | Glebe Town Hall, Chamber Hall

Eight entrants will be selected to give a live performance of two contrasting works which must vary in style and period. The performance must not exceed a total duration of 15 minutes (includes the time taken between pieces/movements). Selection of works may include item prepared in the Heats.

Final: Saturday, 28 June 2025 | Sydney Conservatorium of Music - Recital Hall West

Four entrants will be selected to present a recital program of works varied in style and period and may include works from the Semi-Finals or Heats. The performance must not exceed a total duration of 20 minutes (includes the time taken between pieces/movements).

Adjudicators

Dr Edward Neeman

The Australian-American pianist Edward Neeman has performed across five continents. Critics have lauded him as a “true artist” with “an excellent technique” who “isn’t afraid to put a distinctive stamp on whatever he touches, without resorting to mannerism.” A top prizewinner of numerous international piano competitions, including first prize in the Joaquín Rodrigo Competition in Madrid, second prize in the Southern Highlands International Piano Competition, and third prize in the World International Piano Competition, he has appeared as a soloist with the Prague Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Kentucky Symphony, Symphony of Northwest Arkansas, and the American West Symphony, National Philharmonic Orchestra of Cuba, among others. Dr. Neeman’s albums, Rachmaninoff & Sitsky and Chopin 24 Etudes, were released to critical acclaim. An enthusiastic collaborative artist, he has performed with musicians including Itamar Zorman, Abigail Fischer, Ben Capps, and members of the JACK quartet. Dr. Neeman has made numerous piano duet arrangements for the Neeman Piano Duo, in which he performs with his wife, the Indonesian pianist Stephanie Neeman. Dr. Neeman holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Australian National University, a Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The Juilliard School. His teachers have included James Tocco, Jerome Lowenthal, Solomon Mikowsky, Santiago Rodriguez, Larry Sitsky, and Irena Orlov. Dr. Neeman regularly gives masterclasses around the world. He has been a jury member for the Mozart International Piano Competition in Thailand, the Hong Kong Schools Festival, the Jakarta Conservatory National Competition, the West Australian Pianists Competition, and numerous competitions and festivals in the United States. He has taught at Utah Valley University and is currently a piano lecturer at the Australian National University. www.neemanpianoduo.com

Dr Kristian Chong

Leading Australian pianist Kristian Chong has performed throughout Australia and the UK, and in China, France, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, USA, and Zimbabwe with performances as concerto soloist, chamber musician and solo recitalist. As soloist he has appeared with the Adelaide, Canberra, Melbourne, Queensland, Sydney and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras, and orchestras in the UK, New Zealand and China with conductors such as Werner Andreas Albert, Andrey Boreyko, Nicholas Braithwaite, Jessica Cottis, Fabian Russell, Roy Goodman, Sebastian Lang-Lessing, Nicholas Milton, Benjamin Northey, Tuomas Hannikainen, Marcus Stenz, Arvo Volmer and Marco Zuccarini. Highlights have included Rachmaninoff 3rd (Sydney Symphony), Rachmaninoff's Paganini Rhapsody in Beijing and Canberra, and Britten (Adelaide Symphony Orchestra). More recent highlights include Shostakovich 2nd, Brahms 1st, Beethoven's 3rd and Emperor in Melbourne, Ravel's Left-Hand concerto (Australian Youth Orchestra and Dunedin Symphony Orchestra), Malcolm Williamson's 2nd concerto (Canberra Symphony) and Saint-Saëns 2nd & Rachmaninoff's Paganini Rhapsody with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Described by The Age as ‘a true chamber musician at work’, Kristian’s extensive collaborations include ensembles such as the Tinalley and Australian String Quartets, and cellist Li-Wei Qin, flautist Megan Sterling and baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes, with whom he has recorded with ABC-Classics. He works often with violinists with collaborations including Vadim Gluzman, Rebecca Chan, Sophie Rowell, Dale Barltrop, Daniel Dodds, Jack Liebeck and Satu Vänskä, and violist Christopher Moore, cellist Timo-Veikko Valve, mezzo soprano Caitlin Hulcup and clarinettist Philip Arkinstall amongst others. His festival appearances include the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Adelaide, Coriole, Huntington Estate, Mimir and Bangalow Festivals. Other recent solo and chamber highlights include the Oxford May Music Festival in May, Australian Music Week on Gulangyu Island (Xiamen) with the Melbourne Symphony, and the 'Kristian Chong and Friends' series at the Melbourne Recital Centre, which is in its twelfth year in 2025. Kristian studied at the Royal Academy of Music with Piers Lane & Christopher Elton, and with Stephen McIntyre at the University of Melbourne where Kristian is an Associate Lecturer in Piano & Chamber Music. Earlier studies were with Noreen Stokes & Stefan Ammer at the Elder Conservatorium, where he also learned violin with Beryl Kimber. His competition successes include the Symphony Australia Young Performers Award (keyboard) and the 2000 Australian National Piano Award. Kristian is a YAMAHA Artist.

Important Notes

All entrants are to submit a video recording for the heats via the Sydney Eisteddfod Entrant Portal. Please ensure you have all required supporting documentation ready for upload at the time of submitting your application. The video submission must be uploaded to the Sydney Eisteddfod Entrant Portal by 4:00 PM Monday, 28 April 2025.

Entrant’s video submission must be a YouTube or Vimeo link. Please clearly indicate the work’s title and composer, along with the name of the entrant’s first and last in the title and/or description box (eg. Emily Jones_ Sonata No.3 in F Sharp Minor_Scriabin)

Supporting documentation requirements:

* A 150-word biography

* A short statement outlining your current and proposed studies, and how the Sydney Eisteddfod Kawai Piano Scholarship might help you.

* A publicity picture in colour as a JPEG file - in high resolution (minimum 2M.B.)

* Proposed repertoire for the Semi-Final and Final

Please use the following format when listing your proposed works for later rounds (including complete titles for all movements, if applicable)

Example: Piano Sonata No. 1 in F# minor, Opus 11 by Robert Schumann (28:00 mins)

I. Introduzione. Un poco adagio - Allegro Vivace

II. Aria

III. Scherzo e Intermezzo. Allegrissimo - Lento

IV. Finale. Allegro un poco maestoso

Changes to repertoire cannot be made any later than the fortnight leading up to the Semi-Final. Entrants will be notified if their repertoire is considered unsuitable for the later rounds.

Email: [email protected] if you have any questions relating to this submission method

Conditions

1. Previous winners not eligible.

2. Event is open to any pianist who is a citizen or permanent resident of Australia or New Zealand. ~ Residency and proof of age documents will be cited upon progression to the Semi-Final. This can include a Birth Certificate, an Australian or New Zealand passport, or a permanent resident stamp. A driver’s licence is not acceptable.

3. Adjudicator reports will be written for the preliminary heats only. No marks will be given on these reports.

4. Four finalists and two Reserve Finalists will be selected from the Semi-Finals.

5. The awarding of the scholarship is at the discretion of the adjudicators and will take into consideration presentation, current level of achievement and potential. The scholarship us given on the understanding that the Winner will undertake study in piano performance, including tertiary studies, masterclasses, private lessons, solo and chamber music recitals - both domestically and/or internationally.

6. The scholarship must be utilised within two years of winning and completed within two years thereafter. The payment of instalments is upon application to Sydney Eisteddfod with satisfactory reports of progress from the winner's teacher or teaching institution.

7. The Winner and Finalists must be reasonably available for media interviews and performance engagements. Sydney Eisteddfod will endeavour to continue to provide performance opportunities to alumni as a way of staying connected and nurturing the creative practices of all.

8. Please refer to the Piano Rules & Conditions of Entry.

Prizes

Winner: $5,000 ($1,000 cash plus $4,000 Scholarship). Sponsored by Kawai Australia.

Finalists (excluding place-getter): $300 each. Sponsored by the Estate of the Late John Allison AM