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The Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo

 

“Like synchronized swimmers, the two pianists breath, dive and reach the water in exactly the same moment” – BN de Stem, January 2009

 

IBLA Grand Prize winners Lestari Scholtes (1984) and Gwylim Janssens (1985) have been a piano duo since 2003. Currently they are recognized as one the most promising piano duos of their generation, and leading piano duo from the Netherlands.

 

Their 2009 Carnegie Hall debut, as part of the IBLA Grand Prize winners USA tour, was praised as ‘it could well have been 25 or 30 fingers, so big and well integrated was the sound. Terrific duo in top form’. The duo is well known for their brilliant sound and marvelous technical skills, presenting very intense and energetic performances. This have lead them to performances throughout The Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Israel and the USA. They regularly play in prestigious venues like the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. Their performances have been broadcast by radio and television both inside and outside The Netherlands. Furthermore they performed several times with the Orchestra of Brabant.

The Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo has won as well the jury prize as the public prize at the ninth International Chamber Music Competition Almere, The Netherlands. Four ensembles were admitted to the finals, which took place at the Music Hall Almere on Saturday evening 23rd of May. Next to the jury prize and the public prize, which includes respectively 4.000 and 2.000 euros, they also received the KRO Young Talent Award.

 

The Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo has won many prizes among which the Ravel Award at the IBLA Grand Prize Competition 2008 and the Special Prize of the Music Academy Bialystok at the Fourth International Piano Duo Competition 2008 in Poland, the Sara Lahat Duo Price for the most outstanding duo of Tel Hai International Piano Master Classes 2007 in Israel, and a first prize at the Princess Christina Competition 2003 and 2004.

 

Recently, they participated in the prestigious National Vriendenkrans Competition of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, where they obtained one of the three places in the finals, to be held in 2010 and live broadcasted on the radio. Simultaneously, they won the Radio4 Scolarship and a place in the most leading concert series ‘The Debut’ in the season 2009-2010. The duo is also a finalist of the International Chamber Music Competition Almere 2009, The Netherlands. The finals will be held in May 2009

 

In April and May 2009 The Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo has made a concert tour throughout the United States on the invitation of the IBLA Foundation. They have performed in North Dakota, Virginia, Arkansas and New York, where they had their debut in the famous Carnegie Hall.

 

As a duo they are studying with the piano duo Sivan Silver & Gil Garburg at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater (University of Music and Drama) in Hanover, Germany. Together they have taken many master classes with Igor Roma, Nikolai Petrov, Alexander Tamir, Peter Takács and Menahem Pressler. The latter was broadcast on Dutch national television.