” The Yolland National Piano Competition” Setout Online

Under the patronage of the Directorate of Culture in Lattakia and Al-Assad House for Culture and Arts in Damascus, the Opera House, the Syrian musician Muhammad Farhat launches the ” The Yolland National Piano Competition in its first version in conjunction with the second annual Concert  for his  piano students.

To know more about this competition , Maestro Mohammad Farhat, stated to the Syria Times e- newspaper:  ” The Yolland Piano Competition, is a national competition for all pianists in Syria, as the participants are divided into 4 categories;  the first category is under 8 years old, the second category is from 9-12 years old, while the third category is from 12-15 years old and the  fourth category is over 16 years old. A program has been developed for the competition that takes into account international standards”.

“The competition is very important in terms of giving opportunities to all Syrian pianists to participate in an international competitions to gain experience and benefit as much as possible from mistakes and correct them. In addition, it is an interesting experience for the contestants to conduct competitions online with the existence of a global jury , as the entire competition will be held online.Students will film piano pieces and send them to the jury, where the contestants’ performance is evaluated and the results will be announced in the middle of November”, Farhat added.

“What distinguishes the “Yolland Piano Competition” is that it is free and available to all Syrians, unlike the international competitions, which require paying fees to participate in . Thus, participation in the competition will be available to all Syrians online and in the presence of a jury composed of some of the most important artistic figures in the world, including,  Prof. Hamsa Al-Wadi Juris, who has a special place in the hearts and minds of the Syrian , Prof. Carls Juris who was present in the last Solhi Al-Wadi competition and he was impressed by the distinguished talents of the Syrian students , in addition to Maestro Gerardo Estrada Martinez , Maestro  Andre Maalouli, director of the Damascus Opera House and  I will also be on the jury,” Mr. Farhat clarified.

He went on to say: “Financial prizes will be awarded to the first place winners, in addition to a special prize by the Opera House in Damascus, as it will host a special concert for the winners. Gemini Active Studio, our partner in success, will also offer a special Award of recording a piece of music for one of the winners . The winners  will be awarded in a closing ceremony at Dar Al-Assad for Culture and Arts in Lattakia in the middle of November 2020”.

We, as Syrians, are bound by hope…Music is the only hope through which we can show our potential and our energy and make the world enjoy our artistic creations, as we are the sons of a deep-rooted civilization that granted Love and Life to the world”, Mr. Farhat concluded .

Interviewed by: Amal Farhat