Ok, from the many interesting ways we can be related with Bach -> back to Paris for a moment

Gorden is in semifinals; congrats!

Just heard Gorden did not make the Finals. Don't know the names of those that did, 2 Frenchmen and an Italian I believe.

Finalists...Maulide,Carpentier, Gilardi, Matzener, Bach. Courtesy Peter Bispham.

However I'm not looking at this competition, but I would like to participate... maybe in 10 years time, when I will have my own grand

But what I don't like about COMPETITIONS FOR OUTSTANDING AMATEURS, is that many people taking part in these competitions are fully trained pianists with diplomas, after master courses etc.

Sorry, but the are not amateurs (in my opinion). Amateur for me as a person who has SOME (because you need to have some) musical experience, but if anybody has piano diploma so he is prepared to do this professionaly...

It is funny that nobody will say that he or she went to an engineering school for fun, or got nursing diploma for fun. Only people with piano degree who joined amateur competitions will not consider their degree as a proof that they can make money off of it, or has the potential to make money. They consider their four year degree is nothing, just about like the knowledge of a real real amateur who took piano lesson once a week and no need to study music theory, music history, harmony, etc.

+1

Thanks, pianovirus. It went really well. I've just put the recording of that concert performance on my webpage here Oboe Sonata (unedited but chopped into the three movements). Thanks to the duo for letting me do that. It was an assured and well in-control performance, as I expected it would be having been to a couple of rehearsals, but I still felt a bit on edge sitting there in the audience, wondering how the audience was receiving it. Normal I suppose, for a new piece - I'm usually performing them myself...