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Kenny Fu - Winner of the 2022 Sande Award

Kenny Fu receives his winner's cheque from adjudicator Richard Deering

The Norah Sande Award, an international piano competition held annually in Eastbourne was won on 10th July by Kenny Fu.  From his early solo debut at Wigmore Hall and in the BBC Young Musician of the Year to his attainment of the prestigious Sir Elton John Scholarship, Kenny has shown promise for a bright future.  He has given concerts on three continents and performed extensively in the UK.  He is currently in the Royal Academy of Music Postgraduate programme under the tutelage of Prof. Tatiana Sarkissova.  Sussex concertgoers will be able to enjoy his talents again when he will be the soloist at the Eastbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Autumn concert.  This honour for the Norah Sande Award winner is in addition to a cheque for £2000. 

This year’s finals weekend came the day after a thanksgiving service for Artistic Director and Founder Trustee, Spencer Freeman MBE, who has been the inspiration for the Awards from the start more than 17 years ago. The Award audience and adjudicators remembered fondly all that Spencer had done to promote youth participation in the arts in Sussex.   

The final stages were held in the purpose-built concert hall at the Birley Centre, Eastbourne College.  Semi-finalists performed a 20 minute programme on Saturday 9thth July before a prestigious adjudication panel, Richard Deering (Chairman), Ruth Gerald and Graeme Humphrey   – all keyboard exponents of international repute.   Three were chosen to perform a full recital programme incorporating classical, romantic and contemporary pieces the following day.  Richard Deering said that it was a particularly tough task to choose between the three finalists who wowed the Eastbourne audience over the weekend.

Alexander Doronin was named as runner up and received a cheque for £1000.  Alexander is an ABRSM Scholar at the Royal College of Music studying under Prof. Dmitri Alexeev (piano) and Robert Wooley (harpsichord).  He won the Moscow Piano Open International Competition and has performed as soloist with the Russian National Orchestra and gave a recital at the Hermitage, St Petersburg.

Third place and a cheque for £500 was given to Cristiana Achim who studies at the Royal College of Music under the tutelage of Nigel Clayton.  A winner of numerous music competitions, Cristiana was resident artist with the Romanian Royal House and was selected to become a member of Rezidenta 21 where she can explore her curiosity for contemporary and electronic music.  

"The adjudicators said that the standard had been exceptional for this year’s Norah Sande Award which continues to attract talented young pianists on the cusp of an international performing career” said Brian Knights, the Award’s Chairman.  "Applications were of a high quality which enabled us to put on an outstanding Second Round and Final, enjoyed by the audience now loyal to the annual Award.  The Birley Centre is proving to be a very fine concert hall for the region and we are looking forward to hosting our eighteenth Award finals there next year.”

 

Kenny Fu delighted the audience with his performance in the final round of Haydn’s E minor sonata no 58, Chopin’s Scherzo no 2 op.31 and Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite.  

 

Previous winners of the Award have been performing in top concert halls around the world and achieving great accolades.  Details of the 2023 Award and entry form will shortly be available on www.sande-award.co.uk.  This Award has been enabled by a substantial bequest from the late Norah Sande, in memory of her Grandmother, Alice Mary Caffen.

 

Ruth Gerald, adjudicator, Richard Deering, adjudicator, Brian Knights, Chairman.