ALEXEJ GORLATCH (20) from the Ukraine was last night named as winner of the Axa Dublin International Piano Competition.
Along with the honour and the glory, and €12,500, the winner gets a list of orchestral engagement and recitals in Ireland and abroad, including appearances in New York, Paris and London.
The finalists played to a packed house and President Mary McAleese presented the prizes to the six pianists who made it through to the final cut.
The €9,000 second prize went to Jong-Hai Park (18) from Korea), and the € 6,000 third prize to Soo-Jung Ann (21) also from Korea. The fourth prize, and €4,500, was taken by Eric Zuber (23) from the US and the fifth and sixth places (€3,500 and €2,500) went to Naomi Kudo (22) from the US and Soo-Yeon Ham (23) from Korea .
The prize of €1,200, and a recital at the National Concert Hall , for the best semi-final recital by a finalist other than the first prize winner went to Zuber. The National Symphony Orchestra Prize, of a concerto engagement with the RTÉ NSO, awarded for the best concerto performance by a finalist other than the first prizewinner, went to Park, who also took the €1,300 Bridget Doolan Prize for the best performance of a piece by Mozart.
The RTÉ lyric fm prize for the best performance of one of the specially commissioned test pieces, went to Gorlatch.