For the Calgary-based piano competition Honens, standing out goes deeper than tickling the ivories.
“Honens has always had a focus on artistry, and what we call the ‘Complete Artist,’” says artistic director Jon Kimura Parker (who prefers to go by Jackie). “The ‘Complete Artist’ is somebody who’s not just a great pianist; it’s somebody who clearly has something to say musically, someone who has an artistic message and is delving into the music.”
The most recent “Complete Artist” is a young Ukrainian pianist named Illia Ovcharenko, who was crowned Honens Prize Laureate at the 2022 Honens International Piano Competition. This contest between youthful pianists from across the world only happens every three years — but the Honens Festival, a multi-day shindig of piano concerts across Calgary, takes place every September. For the 2024 edition, Ovcharenko returns to The Blue Sky City to come full circle and perform three concertos.
“A big part of the Honens prize is career development,” Jackie says. “We help them make all these debut appearances, we help them get concert management and make recordings… So it’s exciting for us to have somebody like that promoting the competition as much as we’re promoting him.”
Honens claims to be the “home of Canada’s international piano competition” for people in their 20s. Springboarding off of a 1991 donation of $5 million from philanthropist Esther Honens, the organization’s triannual piano competition has grown into an incubator of young musical talent recognized worldwide. The festival, meanwhile, is meant to “share Mrs. Honens’ love of world-renowned music and provide every Calgarian access to barrier-free, enriching musical experiences.”
“It’s a very important way for us to stay engaged with the city of Calgary every year,” says Jackie. “Most of the events are free! It’s a way to remind the city and all of our family of supporters what we do in the world of piano.” Jackie, himself an internationally acclaimed pianist and educator, will be performing on the second day of the festival alongside Ovcharenko and Alberta-based pianists Carmen Morin and Zhenni Li-Cohen on a pretty unconventional stage: Stephen Avenue. In fact, you might even catch Ovcharenko and other performers kicking off the festival as you stroll through Chinook Mall!
But inclusivity goes deeper than making things free. “During the festival, we have concerts called Classical Adaptations, and they’re designed for neurodiverse kids,” says Jackie. Produced in collaboration with WindSync, this show transforms St. Stephen’s Anglican Church into an adaptive atmosphere for “young audiences, neurodivergent listeners, people with disabilities, and others who face social and systemic barriers to attending typical events.”
Ultimately, the Honens Festival makes it easier for Calgarians to engage with classical musicians; in fact, that’s the whole point, according to Jackie. “Frankly, there’s nothing more exciting to me than seeing three or four musicians on stage in a small group, just smiling at each other while they’re playing and sharing collected energy,” he says. “With all the free concerts, we’re reminding everybody of that.”
The 2024 Honens Festival takes place from September 5 to 8 at various venues. Visit honens.com for more information.
Even More Piano
The Calgary Piano Quartet presents Sounds of Autumn, which includes renditions of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto. September 7 at the Polaris Theatre.
There is More features Theresa Lane on violin and Elizabeth Clarke on piano performing a variety of toe-tapping classics. September 26 at St. Andrew’s United Church.
Join Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra for Beethoven’s Emperor, an evening of symphonic classics featuring pianist Jonathan Biss. September 27 – 28 at the Jack Singer.
MRU Conservatory Presents An Evening with Luka Coetzee, an internationally acclaimed cellist accompanied on piano by Susanne Ruberg Gordon. October 24 at Bella Concert Hall.
Pianist and conductor Jeffrey Kahane is pulling double duty for Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra’s Ravel’s Piano Concerto. November 1 at the Jack Singer.
World-renowned pianist (and co-founder of ChamberFest West) Roman Rabinovich leads a Bach Residency this fall. November 30 at Mount Royal University.
