Canada’s 2025 Honens International Piano Competition Names Quarterfinalists

Due to a tie, 51 selected candidates will compete in either New York or Berlin for the Quarterfinal round in March 2025 

The triennial Honens International Piano Competition supports and promotes outstanding young pianists aged 20 to 30 from all over the world. 

Over the last six weeks, 149 candidate submissions (a 15% increase from the 2022 edition) were evaluated  from pianists from around 19 countries; the initial Applicant Screening Jury comprised Tanya Bannister, Tema Blackstone, Karim Said, and Micah Yui. 

Due to one tie result, 51 pianists have now been selected to advance to the Quarterfinals, which will be held from March 2–4, 2025, in Berlin, and from March 17–19 in New York. 

The full list of 2025 Quarterfinalists can be viewed here or below:

In this round, candidates will perform a 40-minute self-programmed solo recital and participate in a 10-minute interview. The Quarterfinal Jury will comprise Sara Davis Buechner, Nicolas Namoradze, Marianne Perron, and Robert Roux. 

Ten successful candidates from this round will progress to the two-round Semifinal and Final round from October 16–24, 2025, in Calgary, Canada. 

The jury for the Final and Semifinal will include Philippe Bianconi, Jenny Bilfield, Janina Fialkowska, Anne-Marie McDermott, Awadagin Pratt, and Joyce Yang. 

The competition’s Gold Laureate will receive a $100,000 CAD cash award; the Silver Laureate will be awarded $40,000 CAD; and the Bronze Laureate will win $20,000 CAD. All Semifinalists will receive $2,500 CAD each. 

Other prizes include the Audience Award and the Best Performance of Commissioned Work — both valued at $2,500 CAD. 

The competition will also provide Laureates with its Artist Development Program, which involves a comprehensive, three-year artistic development and career accelerator initiative tailored to the Laureates’ goals.

A video introducing the 2025 Quarterfinalists can be viewed below.