Tatiana Dorokhova Wins Silver Medal and Audience Favorite at The Gurwitz International Piano Competition
Tatiana Dorokhova, studying for her Graduate Certificate in the piano studio of Van Cliburn Gold Medalist Stanislav Ioudenitch at Park International Center for Music (ICM), has placed SECOND in the finals of the prestigious Gurwitz International Piano Competition in San Antonio, Texas. For her complete bio and further details, please see below. After starting with 11 candidates, Dorokhova became one of three pianists remaining in the finals.
Dorokhova said: “It was a spectacular two weeks in San Antonio! I am honored to have been awarded the Silver Medal and the Audience Favorite prizes at the Gurwitz International Piano Competition. I offer much gratitude to my dear teacher, Stanislav Ioudenitch, for his invaluable support and instruction as I prepared for this significant competition. I am also grateful for the excellent piano studio and practice facilities at Park University International Center for Music. And finally, I thank the in-person and remote audiences for their incredibly warm response to my performances! I hope to return soon to share more of my music with you!”
Furthermore, Dorokhova is the second ICM pianist to medal in an international competition this year. When asked about his students’ extraordinary success, Ioudenitch replied, “I recognize the talents of these young artists and I try to help them to dig out their potential. Maybe that’s the essence.”
Tatiana (center) is pictured with Young Sun Choi, South Korea, Bronze Medalist, and Yungyung Guo, China, Gold Medalist.
Tatiana Dorokhova
Tatiana Dorokhova was born in 1991 in Volgograd in a family of musicians. She started playing the piano at the age of six and went on to graduate from the Children’s Music School No. 14 in Volgograd (class of Mrs. Anna Cherfas), the Central Music School at the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory (class of Prof. Alexander Mndoyants) in 2009, and the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory (class of Prof. Alexander
Mndoyants) in 2016. She has also participated in master classes of outstanding musicians, including Dmitry Bashkirov, Paul Badura-Skoda, Dina Yoffe, Leon Fleischer and others.
Tatiana’s performances always present an extraordinary involvement in musical material, depth, and thoughtfulness, and each one reveals new facets of the music. Tatiana performs with virtuosity, a sensitive touch, a sense of style and form, and a clear understanding of the cultural context. She deftly performs music encompassing all eras – from the Baroque to the present. Even during her formative years, despite her young age, her performances were repeatedly noted by distinguished musicians to be full of maturity and invariably left a deep mark in the hearts of listeners.
Tatiana is a laureate of many international music competitions, including: the International Competition of Young Pianists named after P.A. Serebryakov (Volgograd, Russia, 2004, 1st prize); the International Competition of Young Pianists named after V.V. Krainev (Kharkiv, Ukraine, 2008, 1st Prize and special Prize for the best performance of works by German composers); the International Piano Competition of the City of Jaen (Spain, 2011, 2nd Prize and prize for the best performance of a compulsory work); the Silvio Bengalli International Piano Competition (Val Tidone, Italy, 2014, 2nd prize); the Johann Nepomuk Hummel International Piano Competition (Bratislava, Slovakia, 2017, 3rd Prize); the Berlin International Music Competition (2018, Grand Prix); The 28th New Orleans International Piano Competition (USA, 2022, 2nd Prize).
Tatiana took part in the recording of the Anthology of Russian and Soviet Piano Music CD series released by the “Melodiya” record company. In addition to her solo activity, she is greatly interested in chamber music. She has collaborated with violinists, performed works for two pianos and a trio, presented all frequently played works for cello and piano, and played piano quintets. She has performed in the halls of the Moscow Conservatory, the St. Petersburg, Moscow and Berlin Philharmonic, and the Cortot Hall in Paris.
Tatiana Dorokhova successfully combines performing and teaching activities. In 2017-2022 she was an Assistant Professor at the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory, working with Professor Alexander Mndoyants. Currently Tatiana is a student of Professor Stanislav Ioudenitch at Park University in Parkville, Missouri.
The Gurwitz International Piano Competition
The Gurwitz International Piano Competition seeks to discover the next generation of top young pianists from around the globe while bridging the art of classical piano with world music and culture. Each competition occurs every four years in San Antonio, TX, USA. Along with standard concert repertoire, pianists demonstrate their versatility by performing music rooted in their native cultures, works by Spanish and Latin composers celebrating San Antonio’s cultural makeup, and a commissioned work with chamber ensemble. A final piano concerto round with full symphony orchestra concludes each competition.
The Gurwitz International Piano Competition (formerly known as The San Antonio International Piano Competition) was founded in 1983 by Dr. Richard Ferguson, Ruth Jean Gurwitz and a group of fellow music lovers, some of whom are still involved today, with the very first competition being held in October 1984 at Trinity University in San Antonio, TX, USA.
After the twelfth competition in June 2016 Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW) absorbed SAIPC and took it to new heights in 2020, renaming it The Gurwitz in honor of the late Ruth Jean Gurwitz, co-founder of the competition as well as former President and President Emeritus for over 20 years.
Ruth Jean Gurwitz (1929-2015)
Ruth Jean Gurwitz was born in San Antonio, TX on Feb. 5, 1929. RJ, as she was known to her friends, displayed an enormous musical talent at a young age. She began playing the piano by ear at age three, which led to a lifelong commitment to music performance and education. Ruth Jean was well remembered at Jefferson High School for her piano recitals. She graduated Stephens College, and attended the University of Texas and the Music Academy of the West. She received a degree in piano from Incarnate Word College. As a young woman, Ruth Jean was a piano teacher and a volunteer for Jewish communal organizations. She also began her decades of support for San Antonio musical organizations. This included the San Antonio Chamber Music Society, the Tuesday Musical Club, Texas Public Radio’s KPAC 88.3 FM.
Ruth Jean co-founded the San Antonio International Piano Competition, as well as residing as its President and President Emeritus for more than 20 years. For this lifelong dedication, the former Board of the competition and acquiring organization Musical Bridges Around the World made the decision to rename the competition in her honor, with the inaugural Gurwitz International Piano Competition occurring in January/February 2020.
