Manhattan Music & Arts Foundation Presents 2026 Manhattan International Piano Festival & Competition Awards Ceremony and Concert in Review
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
October 4, 2026
The stage of Weill Recital Hall was decorated with orange dahlias for the closing concert of the 2026 Manhattan International Piano Festival & Competition on October 4. Dahlias have traditionally been associated with inner strength and dignity, and the orange varieties add associations of enthusiasm and joy. This was a fitting image for an evening devoted to young musicians who had successfully participated in the inaugural Manhattan International Piano Festival & Competition. The concert was the culmination of a three-day event bringing together finalists from regional competitions in cities including London, Tbilisi, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Warsaw, and Aachen. Festival activities took place at Merkin Hall, Bruno Walter Auditorium, and ultimately Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, with competitors divided into Rising Artist, Young Artist, and Professional Artist categories.
To begin the program, faculty member Andreas Frölich opened with two works by Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849), the Polonaise in C-sharp minor, Op. 26, No. 1, and the Nocturne in D-flat major, Op. 27, No. 2. His Polonaise began with considerable intensity. There was also a beautiful singing quality to Mr. Frölich’s sound, particularly when the music moved into the major-key section, where he created an effective and beautifully shaped arc. Elsewhere, the playing could feel slightly stiff, and some peculiarities in the pedaling made one wonder whether these choices were deliberate or whether the piano was not responding as intended. The Nocturne presented similar peculiarities. There were undeniably beautiful moments, but the performance didn’t feel completely settled. Chopin’s writing here depends on an almost suspended sense of time, and the music needed more space to breathe. Everything seemed to be in place, yet some of the work’s nocturnal magic remained elusive.
The competition winners then took the stage, beginning with eight-year-old Alexander Karataev. His Tarantella by Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953) demonstrated impressive clarity, rhythmic energy, and a fabulous left hand, while his Sonatina in C Major, Op. 36, No. 1 by Muzio Clementi (1752–1832) revealed an appealingly round sound and shapely scale work. The second movement sang nicely, though balances and pedaling could be refined further. The finale was quick, lively, and celebratory, a convincing ending to a remarkably confident performance from such a young pianist.
Twelve-year-old Lucas Li followed with the first movement of the Sonata in F major, Op. 10, No. 2 by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827). There was a playful quality to his trills and a clear understanding of Beethoven’s quick changes of character, but the movement needed to unfold more naturally. The pulse was inconsistent, and the tone occasionally abrasive. Beethoven’s rhetorical writing requires each question and answer to speak distinctly, with harmonic changes affecting the direction of the phrase. Mr. Li showed considerable promise here, though greater rhythmic stability would allow the humor to emerge more spontaneously. His Hungarian Rhapsody No. 11 by Franz Liszt (1811–1886) showed a strong instinct for storytelling. The more rhapsodic, Hungarian-inflected passages could have offered a wider palette of color, and louder passages were again harsh, but the fast sections were impressively clear.
Ziqi Zhang performed Consolation No. 2 by Liszt in an interpretation that was technically secure but somewhat lackluster. Here, Liszt’s deceptively simple textures require carefully differentiated layers of sound, and the performance occasionally felt uninspired. Interestingly, an additional work not listed in the program proved more engaging. It was a movement from Eight Memories in Watercolor by Tan Dun (b. 1957). Mr. Zhang found considerably more color here, even if the playing remained a little stiff and could have benefited from greater differentiation of sonority.
Anastasiia Khatova’s performance of the Fantaisie-Impromptu, Op. 66 by Chopin was among the more polished performances of the evening. Her playing was supple, poised, and impressively fast, supported by a wonderful sound. The contrasting middle section might have benefited from a slightly more relaxed tempo, but this was confident playing that communicated command and a clear point of view.
The Young Artist division began with Elizabeth Levine in Sonetto 104 del Petrarca by Liszt. The opening could have projected with greater authority, and the rhythmic proportions were at times overly exaggerated. Her tone could also have benefited from greater warmth and flexibility. What Ms. Levine possessed in abundance, however, was imagination. There was a genuine sense of fantasy in her playing, revealing an interpretation that was both sincere and deeply felt.
Mariia Khatova’s interpretation of the Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 14 by Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) displayed enormous facility, though the opening balance needed refinement and the pacing was rather fast. Octaves tended toward volume rather than shape, lending the performance a heavier, more labored quality than Mendelssohn’s mercurial writing demands. As textures change in this piece, the quality of sound should change with them. Ms. Khatova unquestionably has the technique. A lighter touch and more varied palette would make that technique even more effective.
Tiger Wu immediately established the festive character of the Tarantella from Venezia e Napoli by Liszt. The opening was buoyant, extroverted, and very much a party. He understood the piece’s contrasting personalities, although these could be differentiated still further. The Italian folk elements needed somewhat more line and balance, and the pulse occasionally became unclear, but the bravura passages made a strong impression.
Anastasia Fitenko approached the Ballade No. 3 in A-flat major by Chopin with a calm and gentle opening. Her concept was thoughtful, though the sound could have projected more fully and offered greater differentiation. The final section began somewhat tentatively, but Ms. Fitenko found direction and built toward a satisfying and electrifying conclusion.
One of the most memorable performances of the evening came from seventeen-year-old Anju Nogiwa in Une barque sur l’océan from Miroirs by Maurice Ravel (1875–1937). From the beginning, she established an atmosphere and allowed the music to breathe. In this work, the instrument must continually transform, sometimes ceasing to sound like a piano at all. Ms. Nogiwa understood this exceptionally well. The development of the piece’s ideas felt organic, the ocean became genuinely tempestuous, and her control of light, texture, and sonority produced striking effects without seeming calculated. It was a highlight of the evening.
Among the Professional Artists, Ilia Tatishvili performed the final two movements of Sonata in F minor, Op. 57, Appassionata, by Beethoven. Though the pacing was thoughtful, his sound was sometimes thick, particularly in the Andante con moto, where simplicity and a clearer sense of the movement’s long-term architecture would have been beneficial. In the variations, inner balances could have been more carefully judged, and certain details felt overly precious. Beethoven’s power here comes from rhythm and harmonic inevitability. Forcing the tone can diminish that power. The third movement began with considerable command. Unfortunately, an increasingly unstable pulse and occasional lapses in control gave the music a sense of chaos rather than the inexorable momentum Beethoven demands. The coda felt somewhat unmanaged and insecure.
Daniel Sun’s Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp minor, BWV 849 by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) suffered from a comparatively thin and insufficiently supported tone. The fugue needed a more clearly defined character and a stronger sense of harmonic direction. Sometimes the climaxes arrived prematurely, and the playing often felt too vertical.
Next, Dina Dautova’s interpretation of the Fantasy in F minor, Op. 49 by Chopin had plenty of sweep and spirit. However, the opening was erratic and needed more of the very quality promised by the title: fantasy. The contrasting sections would have been more successful with a stronger sense of harmonic direction and transformation, and the major-key section needed a more distinctive sonority and clearer voicing. Yet as the work progressed, Ms. Dautova increasingly allowed herself a sense of abandon, revealing more powerful and engaging playing.
The evening concluded with Yui Higashijima interpreting the Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 52 by Chopin. The opening was excellent: natural, unforced, and allowed to unfold rather than having an interpretation superimposed upon it. The early use of the una corda pedal was perhaps premature, and there were moments of wandering, but Ms. Higashijima’s careful organization paid off. By the coda, the performance had taken us on a compelling narrative journey, a testament to Higashijima’s understanding of the work’s architecture. It was a considerable achievement!
These culminating performances followed three days of lessons, workshops, and masterclasses, offering a glimpse of the talent and dedication brought together by the festival. The Manhattan International Piano Festival & Competition has established a promising foundation for what could become an important annual event. Congratulations to all involved on a successful inaugural edition!
