Salmon Arm pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko continues to impress in competition, and he’s not slowing down.
Izik-Dzruko won second place prize at the 83rd annual Orchesta symphonique de Montréal (OSM) Competition on Saturday, Nov. 12.
The 2022 edition of the competition was dedicated to the piano, and Izik-Dzurko made it through the semifinal rounds Nov. 8 & 9, and the Bach special round Nov. 11, both held at McGill University. He won two other awards during this run, one recognizing his talents in the Bach round where music selections were either by the composer or heavily influenced by his work, and the Michèle Paré scholarship award which goes to players who have engaged in community activities and helped to make music more accessible.
This year’s competition was the first to happen live in the concert hall in two years and the orchestra was able to perform live alongside the piano candidates during the final round at the Maison Symphonique in Montréal.
Izik-Dzurko is currently in Spain, preparing to play a solo recital in Tenerife on the Canary Islands on Nov. 16. The recital, held at the Real Casino de Tenerife, will seat 300 guests and is one of the prizes Izik-Dzurko won as a result of his first-place win at the Paloma O’Shea Santander International Piano Competition in August of this year.
READ MORE: Young Salmon Arm pianist sweeps international competition in Spain
“Although competitions are fun and exciting, they are a little bit stressful,” said Izik-Dzurko when asked about his upcoming break from competing. “Certainly the whole ranking of things and people getting knocked out of rounds is sort of inimical to the general spirit of classical music.
“Having musicians compete like that just never feels as good as simply sharing music in a performance setting.”
There are lots of opportunities for Izik-Dzurko to share his music coming up.
He will be playing two solo recitals in Paris, France at the end of this month. One of these shows will be at the Salle Cortot recital hall, and he will be sharing that recital with Illia Ovcharenko, the winner of the Honens International Piano Competition which was held in Calgary in October. Izik-Dzurko will play for the first half of the recital, and Ovcharenko will play the second. The second Paris show will be solo.
Closer to home, Izik-Dzurko will be back at his university, UBC, to perform at the Roy Barnett recital hall on Dec. 17. He will be playing an ambitious program consisting of all 10 of the piano sonatas by the Russian composer Alexander Scriabin. This is a big undertaking as the sonatas range quite radically in style and the recital will last about two and a half hours.
The Scriabin recital is in honour of the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth, and as Izik-Dzurko is a big fan, the timing made sense for him to perform an homage.
Izik-Dzurko is also planning two local recitals over the holidays, one in Salmon Arm and one in Kelowna, with proceeds going towards the United Way B.C.’s initiatives to help Ukrainian refugees in the Okanagan. Dates and locations for these concerts are not confirmed yet.
Izik-Dzurko will join the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra (OSO) in Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon on Feb. 10, 11 and 12 respectively. He will play the same concerto that he performed in the final round of the OSM Competition in Montreal, joined by the OSO and the Youth Orchestra as well.
Learn more about upcoming performances on Izik-Dzurko’s website: www.jaedenizikdzurko.com
READ MORE: Salmon Arm’s Song Sparrow Hall winning over musicians
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