Classic Violin Olympus Announces Prize Winners at London Classic Violin Competition
Boris Brovtsyn and Jinzhu Li received top prizes in the fourth preselection contest for the Classic Violin Olympus
The international journey towards the Classic Violin Olympus International Competition is now fast approaching its conclusion, as the fourth of the competition's six prestigious preselection contests came to a close.
Held from August 26 - 30, at the Royal College of Music in London, UK, the London Classic Violin Competition saw 20 violinists vying for a coveted spot in Classic Violin Olympus’s Grand Finale in Dubai from April 22–28, 2025.
Boris Brovtsyn claimed the First Prize, Jinzhu Li secured Second Prize, and Elly Suh was awarded Third Prize. In addition to their share of the €35,000 prize pool — with Boris Brovtsyn receiving €20,000, Jinzhu Li €10,000, and Elly Suh €5,000 — both Boris Brovtsyn and Jinzhu Li earned eligibility to participate in Classic Violin Olympus all expenses covered.
Led by Jury Chairman Pavel Vernikov (Switzerland), the jury included Roland Daugareil (France), Yamen Saadi (Israel), Weidong Tong (China), and Robin Wilson (UK).
Throughout the contest’s five-day run, each violinist presented a diverse program designed to illuminate all facets of their musical skill set. In the initial round, candidates presented their renditions of one of Niccolò Paganini's 24 caprices of their choice, followed by the first movement of a concerto by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and the Violin Sonata by Composer-in-Residence Alexey Shor and Mikhail Pletnev.
Those who made it to the Second Round embraced a more flexible repertoire, showcasing their individuality with a virtuoso piece for violin solo or accompanied by piano, within a 30-40 minute timeframe.
The spotlight now shifts to Rome, where the fifth preselection event awaits at the Auditorium Parco della Musica Ennio Morricone from September 9-13.
For more information and competition updates, click here for the official website.
A fourth-generation musician, Boris started to play violin under the guidance of his grandfather, a student of Lev Tzeitlin and Abram Yampolsky. After graduating from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory where he studied with Maya Glezarova, Boris made his UK debut with the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Rumon Gamba and soon relocated to London.
He completed his studies with David Takeno at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and has taught there himself from 2010 until 2016. In addition to the professorship at the GSMD, he also chaired a class at the Trinity College of Music in Greenwich. He is currently holding a professorship at the Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität in Vienna.
Boris Brovtsyn appears on numerous CDs with Decca, BIS, Onyx, and Naxos labels. His recording of Schubert and Schoenberg chamber works with Janine Jansen has won the ECHO Klassik award and the Brahms clarinet quintet with Martin Fröst was nominated for the Gramophone award. He has recorded an all-Schulhoff disc in January 2016, and his CD of Ysaye's solo violin sonatas was released in 2018 to great critical acclaim.
He has performed with, among others, Sir Neville Marriner, Vladimir Jurowski, Neemi Jarvi, Marek Janowski, Vassili Sinaisky, Jan Pascal Tortelier, Mikhail Jurowski, Gerd Albrecht, Alexander Vedernikov, Michael Sanderling, Arvo Volmer and Antony Wit; with Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, London Philharmonic, Warsaw Philharmonic, the Royal Danish Orchestra, Russian National Orchestra, Berliner Rundfunk, São Paulo Symphony, Academie of St. Martin in the Fields and the BBC Symphony, Philharmonic and Scottish orchestras.
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