"Violins&Soul" Salon Music Violin Competition Announces 3 Finalists

Three young violinists have been invited to the competition Finals, taking place at the AMADEUS Festival Vienna on July 2, 2023

Held annually, AMADEUS Festival Vienna brings together international musicians at the grounds of the AMADEUS International School Vienna for a series of performances and workshops. The festival has recently launched a competition that focuses solely on the genre of salon music.

The first of its kind, the inaugural Salon Music Violin Competition "Violins&Soul” will reward young musicians for their best interpretation of the then-popular European music genre from the 19th century.

The three finalists include 21-year-old Dongyoung Jake Shim from Korea, 21-year-old Lucilla Rose Mariotti from Italy, and 23-year-old Karisa Minji Chiu from the United States.

"We've been asking ourselves: why is this music, which used to and continues to touch all of us, losing its presence in the very places where it used to move societies?" the competition's founders told The Violin Channel in a recent interview. "It provides rich nutrients for the soul, yet its gradually losing importance in our musical lives.

Open to artists aged between 15 and 30 years old, the competition offers a grand prize of 5,000 Euros and a two-year loan of the 1709 Antonio Stradivari violin from the Goh Family Collection.

The second prize of 3,000 Euros and the third prize of 1,000 Euros, may also include the loan of a violin from the Goh Family Collection at the discretion jury. The public prize, chosen by the festival's live audience, will include 500 Euros.

The competition finals will take place at the AMADEUS Festival Vienna on July 2, 2023. Additionally, all finalists will be required to attend the Janoska Ensemble Workshop on June 29 and 30, 2023, and will then perform with the Janoska Ensemble at a concert on June 30, 2023.

Finalists will also receive full festival passes to the AMADEUS Festival 2023. Finalists will receive free accommodation at the first-class Boarding House of AMADEUS International School Vienna.

All prize winners will be required to perform at the AMADEUS Festival Vienna 2024 and may also receive performance opportunities organized by the festival.

The jury of the competition is to include Mrs. Karen Goh, Director of AMADEUS Festival Vienna, Mr. Brendan Goh, Artistic Director of AMADEUS Festival Vienna, and Dr. Wilson Goh.