Turkish-born violinist Veriko Tchumburidze, winner of the 2016 competition, will be the soloist in Dvorak’s Violin Concerto in A minor.
The programme of the concert includes the Rebirth Symphony by Mieczysław Karłowicz and the world premiere of Nova, a new piece by Ukrainian composer Victoria Poleva.
The competition’s spokesperson said that the performance of Poleva’s piece is “a symbolic gesture of support for Poland’s neighbours at the time of war.”
Thirty-nine violinists from 12 countries are expected to take part in first-stage auditions, which are due to get under way on Saturday.
They represent Poland (seven entrants), the United States (six), South Korea (five), Germany (five), China (four), Japan (three), as well as Austria, the Netherlands, France, Kazakhstan, Switzerland and Singapore. The youngest participant, Maya Madeleine Wichert of Germany, is 16.
An international jury is chaired by French violinist and conductor Augustin Dumay. The prizewinners’ names will be announced on October 21. The top prize winner will receive a cash prize of EUR 50,000.
The competition has generated enormous media interest, with almost 100 music critics and journalists covering the event for outlets such as Britain's The Strad magazine, the US Violin Channel and the Deutschlandfunk.
Held for the first time in Warsaw in 1935, the Wieniawski Competition is the world’s oldest violin competition. It moved to Poznań after a lapse of 17 years and has been held in that city since 1952. This year it will be held for the 16th time.
Past prizewinners include Ginette Neveu, David Oistrakh, Ida Haendel, Grażyna Bacewicz, Bartłomiej Nizioł, Piotr Pławner and Agata Szymczewska.
Henry Wieniawski was a child prodigy who entered the Paris Conservatory at the age of eight. He is regarded as one of the greatest violinists after Paganini.
He died in 1880, at the age of 45. His compositional output includes two violin concertos, mazurkas, polonaises, etudes and caprices.
Henryk Wieniawski. Image: FBC/Public Domain
(mk/gs)