Prizewinners Announced at the Oskar Nedbal Viola Competition

The fourth edition of the Prague-based Oskar Nedbal Viola Competition has recently come to a close. Following several selection rounds and a live semi-final, the finalists all performed a concerto with the Carlsbad Symphony Orchestra in the concert hall of the Prague Conservatory.

At the 2021 edition of the competition, no player was deemed worthy of First Prize — but that cycle was broken in 2022, with 25-year-old Dutch-Japanese violist Takehiro Konoe taking out the top spot. He was also given the award for the best performance of a work by Martinů.

The full results are as follows:

• 1st prize — Takehiro Konoe (Japan/the Netherlands)

• 2nd prize — Kyungsik Shin (South Korea)

• 3rd prize — Joseph Skerik (USA)

• Competition Laureate — Hwayoon Lee (South Korea)

• Honorary mention — Laura Liu (USA), Wilhelm Magner (Canada), Yibo Cao (China), Ilias Livieratos (Greece)

• Audience prize — Kyungsik Shin (South Korea)

• Prize for the best interpretation of a work by Oskar Nedbal — Ilias-Ion Livieratos (Greece)

• Prize for the best interpretation of a work by Martinů — Takehiro Konoe (Japan/the Netherlands)

• Pirastro Prize for an outstanding young talent — Laura Liu (USA)

• Prague Conservatory Director's Prize for the best Czech competitor — Bohumil Bondarenko (CZ)