Piano Competitions Flourish in 2025 – A Unique Clash

The year 2025 promises to be an exciting one for the piano world, with the top three prestigious piano competitions taking center stage worldwide. With Chopin, taking place each five years, Cliburn and Queen Elisabeth each four, a wonderful clash happens as these events serve as vital platforms for emerging pianists to showcase their talent, gain international recognition and launch their careers.

International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition

One of the most renowned events is the 19th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition, held in Warsaw, Poland. Celebrating the works of the legendary composer, this competition, held every five years, is a benchmark for pianists specializing in Chopin’s repertoire. A record 642 pianists applied, from 54 countries. Of these, 171 were selected for the preliminary round, which took place from April 23 to May 4, 2025.
Read more at: chopincompetition.pl

Pianists from 28 countries performed their best Chopin etudes, nocturnes, scherzos, and mazurkas. Watch all performances online and form your opinion about who is worthy of a place in the final stages of the competition this October in Piano Street’s Chopin Competition tool which lists all of the performances from the preliminary round of the 2025 edition.
See list of all pianists here >>
All performed pieces (links to scores and videos) >>

The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition

The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, held in Fort Worth, Texas, is another highlight. Known for its huge repertory requirements for contestants, generous prize money and its extensive career management support for medalists, including concert bookings and publicity efforts. From a pool of 340 applicants representing 45 countries and regions, 77 pianists were chosen to audition live. From those, just 30 were selected to return to Fort Worth in May as competitors.

Hear the Finalists:
https://www.youtube.com/@TheCliburn

The Queen Elisabeth Competition

The Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, Belgium, is renowned for its comprehensive approach, including piano, violin, and voice categories and is held every fourth years. The piano competition lists outstanding laureates such as Valery Afanassiev, Brigitte Engerer, Emmanuel Ax, Michael Ponti, and earlier, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Cécile Ousset, Lazar Berman, Leon Fleisher, Emil Gilels and Moura Lympany. Approximately 300 applicants competed in the 2025 competition, with a pre-selection jury selecting 70 to advance. The same jury members judged subsequent rounds to ensure consistency. After ten competitors withdrew, 60 remained for the quarter-finals. From there, 24 were chosen for the semifinals, and ultimately, 12 finalists were selected for the final round.
Final performances:
https://queenelisabethcompetition.be/en/watch-listen-detail/doc/69607/
All Rounds:
https://www.youtube.com/@QueenElisabethCompetition

More competitions in 2025

The Honens International Piano Competition, based in Calgary, Canada, is also scheduled for 2025. Known for its focus on artistry and storytelling through music, Honens offers a unique platform emphasizing musicality and personal expression. The competition’s emphasis on particularly those who embody the “Complete Artist” philosophy. Honens emphasizes not just technical skill, but also artistic vision, the ability to connect with audiences, and an understanding of the role of music in society.
https://www.honens.com/competition/2025-competition/

Additionally, the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition, Italy 49, the is rich in both tradition and innovation and is regarded as one of the most successful institutions of its kind. Its biennial structure includes the Glocal Piano Project – which aims to give the competition and its participants greater global visibility while limiting travel distances and promoting sustainability – and final stages that are both intensively followed by audiences worldwide.
https://www.busoni-mahler.eu/en/home-en/

Clara Haskil International Piano Competition in Switzerland are set to feature remarkable young artists, emphasizing both technical mastery and interpretative depth.
https://clara-haskil.ch/