Piano Competitions for the 21st Century

Soundcheck | May 3, 2010
The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition got underway this past weekend in Fort Worth, Texas. Considered to be the world's pre-eminent piano competition, it takes place every four years and brings together 35 contestants who vie for cash prizes, tour dates and recording deals. This year's competition includes a new wrinkle: live audio and video streaming of the performances through its Web site, cliburn.org. Internet users can cast a vote during the final phase of the competition—American Idol-style—and a separate Internet prize will be handed out to the pianist who receives the most electronic votes. Scott Cantrell, music critic of the Dallas Morning News, joins us to look at the changes in this year's competition.

We'll also have a live performance by roots music troubadours Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez.
» More on the Van Cliburn Competition
» More on Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez

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