Round 2 and Semi Finalists Announced in Michael Hill Int. Violin Competition 2017

Michael Hill International Violin Competition Round Two and Semi Finalists  Announced

The six semi-finalists in the 2017 Michael Hill International Violin Competition were announced at Queenstown Memorial Centre on Monday 5 June. They were selected by the International Jury from 16 competitors who all performed over the weekend. Scroll down to see and hear all the performances.

The Semi Finalists are:

1. Sumina Studer – Switzerland
2. Ioana Cristina Goicea – Romania
3. Olga Šroubková – Czech Republic
4. Kunwha Lee – South Korea
5. Benjamin Baker – New Zealand
6. Luke Hsu – USA

Also awarded was the prize for Best Performance of New Zealand Commissioned Work, Karlo Margetić's On An Imaginary Folk Song, for which the winner, Olga Šroubková, receives NZ$2,000.

The semi finals are in Auckland on Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 June at the Auckland Town Hall Concert Chamber. The competitors will perform Mozart quintets with established New Zealand musicians, cellist Ashley Brown, violinists Justine Cormack and Gillian Ansell, and violist Julia Joyce. RNZ Concert will live stream the semi finals online and broadcast them live on air in Music Alive at 7:30pm each night.

The Grand Final is on Saturday 10 June at Auckland Town Hall, when each of the three finalists will perform a concerto with the full Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Giordano Bellincampi.

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You can see and hear the Round One performances by clicking here.

The 2017 Michael Hill International Violin Competition - Round Two performances

Vote for your favourite performer for the Michael Hill Audience Prize by visiting the online voting booth at www.violincompetition.co.nz. The winner will be announced during prize giving at the Finals on 10 June.

The repertoire for the second and final round of the quarter finals is:

1) The NZ Commissioned work by Karlo Margetić's 'On An Imaginary Folk Song'.

2) One of the following Sonatas with piano:

• Brahms Sonata No 1 in G major Op 78
• Brahms Sonata No 2 in A major Op 100
• Brahms Sonata No 3 in D minor Op 108
• Debussy Sonata for violin and piano
• Faure Sonata in A major Op 13
• Franck Sonata in A major
• Grieg Sonata No 3, Op 45
• Janaček Sonata for violin and piano
• Prokofieff Sonata No 1 in F minor
• Prokofieff Sonata No 2 in D major
• Ravel Sonata for violin and piano

3) One virtuoso work of own choice from the 19th or 20th century.