Meet the Winners of the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition

This Sunday, the Calgary Civic Symphony presents not one but two recent winners of the Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition. Don't miss a rare opportunity to hear the two of the world’s most brilliant amateur pianists!

Periodontist by day, a pianist by night, Thomas Yu is the unanimous winner of the 2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition. He has captured numerous top prizes in other amateur piano competitions, and performed in prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall, and collaborated with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Orchestra of Wales. In addition to all this, he is a full-time periodontist with a private practice in Calgary! Thomas will be performing Saint-Saëns' exotic Piano Concert No. 5 "Egyptian".
 

Originally from Milwaukee, Jon Lee, the first-prize winner of the 2022 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition, studied music as a child before receiving bachelor's and master's degrees in computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He reconnected with classical music when he moved across the country to work as a software engineer at Apple. Combining his interests in music and technology, Jon wrote MusicPodium, an app for iPad, to make piano score reading more portable. He continues to explore projects to advocate and share his enthusiasm for classical music. Jon will be performing Ravel Piano Concerto in G major.

Entitled "Mediterranean Shore", the concert will take the audience on musical voyage with Ibert’s colourful and evocative Escales (Ports of Call) and Respighi’s Pines of Rome.

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Founded in 1975, the Calgary Civic Symphony has been performing live orchestra music in Calgary for over forty years. Begun as a venue for non-professional or retired musicians, the Civic Symphony has grown in both numbers and artistic excellence. The orchestra feature collaborations with some of Calgary’s best soloists and musical organizations.