Leeds International Piano Competition Relaunch
The Leeds International Piano Competition is set for a relaunch under the artistic leadership of Sir Stephen Hough. The pianist will oversee major reforms to the triennial event, which was first established in 1963. Hough will also chair an international jury featuring pianists Piotr Anderszewski, Lucas Debargue, Yeol Eum Son, Kathryn Stott, and the Master of the King’s Music, composer .
The 2027 edition of the competition will introduce an increased upper age limit of 35 years and allow competitors complete freedom in selecting their repertoire, ranging from Couperin to Copland, Boulez to Busoni.
“I never wanted to be on juries and I don’t like competitions,” said Hough. “They can seem like a bunch of tests where you’re trying to trip up the competitors. That’s not what music’s about. But, I thought, at , maybe there’s something slightly different we can do here, and find a way to give younger musicians a platform to show us who they are. Everyone isn’t good at everything.
“Too often competitions become like an extension of your final exam at music college. But we want to know what are you going to programme when you are asked to do your Wigmore Hall or Carnegie Hall debut? Give us a programme, show us your best side so that we can see the best of you, not the sort of mediocre sort of half best of everything.”
Concerto Final and Repertoire Selection
For the concerto final, finalists will submit three piano concertos of their choice, unrestricted by any predetermined list, which they would be willing to perform with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of its principal conductor Domingo Hindoyan. Hindoyan, Hough, and one of the jurors will then select the concerto the finalist will perform.
Age Limit Increase and Its Significance
The competition’s raised age limit, now set at 35, contrasts with most piano competitions that restrict participants to under 30. Hough explained the rationale behind this change:
“It’s not that we’re necessarily expecting to have a ton of people aged 33 and 34 entering – though they’re certainly welcome to do so,” said Hough. “But I wanted to send a message to younger players saying there’s not a rush about this. Don’t feel that, you know, you have to compete suddenly before you get too old. You have time.
“It comes from something that my main piano teacher Gordon Green said to me when I was in my teens, ‘I’m not interested in how you play now. It’s how you’re going to play in 10 years that interests me.’”
Hough’s Connection to Leeds and Media Coverage
Born on the Wirral and educated at the Royal Northern College of Music, Hough expressed his long-standing admiration for the Leeds competition:
“From my childhood I was in awe of the Leeds. It was both an exciting and an unattainable goal as the whole nation sat glued to the television to witness the finest piano playing,” he said.
Historically, the competition’s finals were broadcast live on BBC Two. More recently, BBC Radio 3 has aired the finals and semi-finals, and a partnership with Medici TV provides live streaming and on-demand access to the final rounds. Additionally, content will be available on the Leeds’ YouTube channel and on .
Past Winners and Gender Representation
Notable past winners include Radu Lupu and Murray Perahia, while finalists have featured Mitsuko Uchida, Sir András Schiff, Lars Vogt, and Federico Colli.
Only two women have won the competition to date: Sofya Gulyak in 2009 and Anna Tsybuleva in 2015, both Russian-born. Male pianists have predominantly dominated the finals in recent years; was introduced in 2024 and this trend is expected to continue in the 2027 competition.
Hough emphasized the importance of addressing unconscious bias and ensuring that no particular style is favored:
“We need to keep these things in mind and make sure that there’s no unconscious bias, and that we’re not weighting things towards any particular style,” said Hough, adding however that “by the time you get to 20-year-olds on stage in Leeds, in a way, it’s too late to think in terms of balance and representation. It has to start early, with parents and schools.”
Prizes and Audience Engagement
In addition to the main prize of £50,000, the competition will award prizes for contemporary music, the most outstanding encore, a new Leeds Piano Trail prize for a community-focused project to be developed in 2028, and an audience prize.
“If the audience disagrees with the jury, that, for me, would be a positive thing,” said Hough. “This is not a test, but a platform. I want to get away from the idea that there is one single winner. Choosing a winner is an imprecise and subjective thing. On a different day a different jury could come up with a different result.
“The Leeds put itself on the map looking for imagination, for poetry, for a deep kind of musicality. That remains,” he said. “Ultimately, we just want to find someone who changes our lives during their performance.”
