The Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition is the largest and longest-running chamber music competition in the nation and it’s coming to the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on May 11-13. Over the course of three days, string quartets, piano ensembles, and brass and wind ensembles will compete for $34,000 in prize money, tours, and the right to be called Fischoff prize winner. These talented young musicians will come from across the globe to vie for medals and the prestige of winning a prize at this most prestigious of competitions. During their stay, they will play 84 performances in five rounds, which will culminate in the Grand Prize Concert on Sunday, May 13, at 3:30 p.m. in the Leighton Concert Hall.
Here are some interesting facts about Fischoff:
- Along with 25 states and the District of Columbia, twenty-four countries were represented in the entries this year. These included musicians from Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Cuba, France, Germany, Honduras, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Philippines, Republic of Georgia, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan, U.S.A., Uzbekistan, Venezuela, and Vietnam.
- The youngest competitor is 13.
- Forty-nine ensembles will be participating in the competition.
- Thirteen Junior Division ensembles will attend masterclasses with world-class jurors.
- More than 90 volunteers help make this event possible.
Both Saturday and Sunday’s performances will be live-streamed around the world with an estimated 6,000+ global viewers watching—but there’s nothing like hearing these performances live. We invite you to listen to the best in our nation and the world!
All competition performances are free and open to the public. The closing Grand Prize Concert is a ticketed event featuring a performance by the Junior Division Gold Medal Winner as well as the two Senior Division Gold Medalists from the competition doing elegant battle to become the 2018 Grand Prize Winner and will perform again at the DeBartolo Performing Art Center as a 2018–2019 Presenting Series artist on October 28, 2018.
View Competition Video Archives
The competition will be the last for current Executive Director Ann Divine. Carmen Creel will take over as new Executive Director on July 1, 2018. In a statement, the Associate Dean for the Arts at Notre Dame and Fischoff National Chamber Music Association President Peter Holland said, “Sad though we all are to say goodbye to Ann Divine, we thank her for her astonishing work over more than half of the Fischoff’s long history. She has spearheaded Fischoff’s growth, nationally and internationally, steadying us in difficult times and encouraging us in good times. I am delighted to welcome Carmen Creel as the Fischoff’s next Executive Director. Carmen’s varied experiences in the world of music combined with her firm grasp of relationship-building philanthropy make her uniquely positioned to steward the Fischoff through this important institutional transition.”
