American Pianists Association

Non-profit performing arts organization

American Pianists AssociationFormation| 1979; 45 years ago (1979)
by Victor Borge, Tony Habig, and Julius Bloom

|

Purpose| Discover, promote and advance the careers of young, American, world-class jazz and classical pianists
Headquarters| 4603 Clarendon Road, Suite 030, Indianapolis, IN 46208
Location|

* Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

Region served

| United States

President & CEO

| Chris Williams

Current Classical Winner

| Kenny Broberg

Current Jazz Winner

| Isaiah J. Thompson

Main organ

| Board of Directors
Website| americanpianists.org

Formerly called

| The Beethoven Foundation

The American Pianists Association is a non-profit performing arts organization based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization's goal is to "discover, promote, and advance" the careers of young American pianists. The organization hosts a biennial competition called the American Pianists Awards, which switches focus from classical piano to jazz piano every two years.[1] Valued at over $200,000, the awards of the competition are among the most lucrative piano prizes in the world.[citation needed] The Cole Porter Fellowship, awarded to the winner of the jazz competitions, is one of the greatest honors young American jazz musicians can receive.[2] In non-competition years, the organization hosts a recital series called Grand Encounters,[3] and from 2003 through 2008, the association produced Indy Jazz Fest.[4]

## History

[edit]

The association was "born" in New York City in 1979 as the Beethoven Foundation, conceived by the Victor Borge, a Danish pianist; Tony Habig, of the piano manufacturer Kimball International; and Julius Bloom, former general manager of Carnegie Hall. Their original intent was to help identify and groom young American pianists to compete in international piano competitions by offering fellowships over a three-year period that included cash awards, concerts and media coverage.[5] It changed its name to The American Pianists Association in 1989 and added a jazz competition in 1992.[citation needed]

In 1982, The Beethoven Foundation moved its national headquarters to Indianapolis, partly because of geographical ties by two of its founders, Habig and Borge. Now the executive offices are a part of the Arts Collaborative housed in Lilly Hall at Butler University. In 1989, the name was changed to the American Pianists Association to reflect a broader scope that included jazz pianists, and the mission also has broadened beyond the original purpose.[5]

## Competitions

[edit]

Finalists for the American Pianists Awards compete through a series of adjudicated public recitals. The classical competition includes solo piano, chamber music, collaborative vocal, and concerto performances and ends with each finalist performing a piano concerto with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. The jazz competition includes repertoire for solo piano, jazz trio, vocal jazz, and jazz orchestra.[6]

## Award recipients

[edit]

The American Pianists Association website lists these winners:[7]

Year | Winner | Winner | Winner

|
|
|

2023 Jazz  | Isaiah J. Thompson |  |
2021 Classical | Kenneth Broberg[8] |  |
2019 Jazz  | Emmet Cohen |  |
2017 Classical | Drew Petersen |  |
2015 Jazz | Sullivan Fortner |  |
2013 Classical | Sean Chen |  |
2011 Jazz | Aaron Diehl |  |
2009 Classical | Grace Fong | Adam Golka |
2007 Jazz | Dan Tepfer |  |
2006 Classical | Stephen Beus | Spencer Myer |
2004 Jazz | Adam Birnbaum |  |
2003 Classical | Thomas Rosenkranz | Michael Sheppard |
2001 Jazz | Aaron Parks |  |
2000 Classical | Christopher Taylor | Ning An |
1998 Jazz | Jesse Green |  |
1997 Classical | Derison Duarte | Hiroko Kunitake | Peter Miyamoto
1996 Jazz | Rick Germanson |  |
1995 Classical | James Giles | Anthony Molinaro | J.Y. Song
1994 Jazz | Kevin Bales |  |
1993 Classical | Adam Kent | Nicholas Roth | Lori Sims
1992 Jazz | Jim Pryor |  |
1991 Classical | Timothy Bozarth | Anthony Padilla | Daniel Shapiro
1989 Classical | Jonathan Bass | Brian Ganz | Stephen Prutsman
1987 Classical | Diane Hidy | Philip Hosford | Nelson Padgett
1985 Classical | Frederic Chiu | R. Clipper Erickson | Dmitry Rachmanov
1983 Classical | Phillip Bush | John Salmon | Michael Lewin
1981 Classical | David Buechner | Glenn Sales | Jonathan Shames

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "These young star pianists will perform in Indianapolis starting this fall". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2024-03-24.
2. ^ Chinen, Nate; Smith, Trevor (13 July 2023). "Relive the 2023 American Pianists Awards from Indianapolis". NPR Music.
3. ^ Harvey, Jay. "Florida native Sean Chen named DeHaan Classical Fellow". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2013-08-15.
4. ^ "History". American Pianists Association. Retrieved 2013-08-15.
5. ^ a b "Fellows of the American Pianists Association". American Music Teacher. 54 (4): 39–42. 2005.
6. ^ "Competitions". American Pianists Association. Archived from the original on 2013-04-28. Retrieved 2013-08-15.
7. ^ "Former Fellows Page". American Pianists Association. Archived from the original on 2013-08-31. Retrieved 2013-08-15.
8. ^ Kenny Broberg wins 2021 American Pianists Awards in Indianapolis by Domenico Bongiovanni. Indianapolis Star, 27 Jun 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-30.

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* United States