June 01, 2023 I Event
Pearl River Hosts Premio Paganini Violin Competition
From left: Barbara Grosso, Maestro Nazzareno Carusi, and Xiao Wei, vice president of Guangzhou Pearl River Piano Group, during the event.
On April 25, the Kayserburg Concert Hall in Guangzhou, China, served as the launch point for the pre-selection round of the 57th Premio Paganini International Violin Competition. First held in 1954 and named after the Italian virtuoso composer Niccolo Paganini, it has since become one of the most influential violin competitions.
After successive rounds in New York City, Prague and Tokyo, the competition will move to Genoa, Italy, where 30 competitors will be reduced to three for the finals on Oct. 27, 2023, at Teatro Carlo Felice opera house. The winner will be awarded the top prize of 30,000 euros and the opportunity of playing the lI Cannone Guarnerius, a famed violin that was created in 1743 by Italian luthier Giuseppe Antonio Guarneri of Cremona, Italy, and owned by Paganini before he donated it to his hometown.
Pearl River recently introduced a new line of string instruments that follow the centuries-old tradition of the famous Cremona School of construction, with the Stradivari violin used as the main production template. For these instruments, Pearl River luthiers experienced in traditional Italian craftsmanship take six months or more to hand-build instruments with European-sourced wood seasoned for 20-plus years.
