Romanian Maria Marica, aged 24, won the violin section of the 2022 George Enescu International Competition after a final in which she performed the Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77 by Johannes Brahms. 

Moreover, in addition to the big prize of EUR 15,000, the young violinist also received a special award from the IMK Vienna Association, represented by jury member Igor Petrushevski: a concert as a soloist with the North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 2023 in Prague. Maria Marica will perform, together with cellist Benjamin Kruithof (the winner of the cello section of the Enescu Competition), the Double Concerto in A minor for violin and cello, Op.102 by Johannes Brahms. 

Also, the 2022 Enescu Competition winner has the opportunity to perform in the 2023 and 2024 editions of the George Enescu International Festival and Competition, as well as in concerts organized during the Romanian Philharmonic seasons. 

Maria Marica has been studying violin since she was seven years old and is currently tutored by David Grimal at the Saarbrücken University of Music. She gave recitals and concerts in Romania, France, Italy, Germany, and the United States, performing in chamber ensembles with renowned musicians such as Marc Coppey, Philippe Cassard, David Grimal, Frans Helmerson, Boris Brovtsyn, Sergey Malov, Victor Julien-Laferrière, and Solenne Païdassi. She is a member of the Les Dissonances Ensemble and was also a member of the Romanian Youth Orchestra, with whom she had the chance to perform in concert halls such as Musikverein Vienna, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Philharmonic in Paris, and Konzerthaus Berlin.

Romanian Ștefan Aprodu won the second prize in Enescu Competition’s violin section (worth EUR 10,000), while Grégoire Torossian from France ended the contest in third place (EUR 5,000). The jury also awarded the best foreign accompanist, a title that went to the Frenchman Aimo Pagin.

The 2022 Enescu Competition trophies, given to the three young violinists, are made of glass and bear the signature of the artist Iulia Năstase.

The jury of the violin section at the 2022 George Enescu International Competition consisted of Dmitry Sitkovetsky (President of the jury), Remus Azoiței, David Grimal, Frank Huang, Simon James, Paul Kantor, Silvia Marcovici, Igor Petrushevski, and Krzysztof Wegrzyn.

The 18th edition of the George Enescu International Competition takes place in Bucharest between September 4 and 18. Over 100 young musicians from all over the world signed up for the online stage of the contest, and 34 of them got the opportunity to take the stage at the Romanian Athenaeum in the Semi-Final and Final stages of the three interpretive sections: violin, cello and piano.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: the organizers; credit Alex Damian)