Transparent Civil Society Initiative

To comprehensively and sustainably promote young talents between the ages of 6 and 19, to set impulses, to make a difference, to stand up for art, culture and international understanding, to give young pianists a special, enriching and motivating experience with our competition - we dedicate ourselves passionately and with great commitment to these goals as the non-profit organization "International Piano Competition Taunus e. V.".

The three-day organization of the "International Piano Competition for Young Pianists Kronberg" every two years is therefore a very special concern for us. The first very successful edition took place in 2023, and from March 21 to 23, 2025, the competition will be held for the second time in the Casals Forum of Kronberg Academy, once again under the patronage of Minister President Boris Rhein.

Our competition has an innovative concept. It is also characterized internationally by prizes in seven age groups - promotion of young talents under the age of 12 - numerous and valuable special prizes with a focus on promotion - participation in master classes, concert appearances, professional audio and video recordings, etc. - a top-class jury(Prof. Matthias Kirschnereit, Prof. Claudia Schellenberger, Prof. Christian A. Pohl, Ulrike Danne-Feldmann), optimal conditions, a high level of quality in all areas as well as a high standard of musicianship.Matthias Kirschnereit, Prof. Claudia Schellenberger, Prof. Christian A. Pohl, Ulrike Danne-Feldmann), optimal conditions, a high standard in all areas as well as a very personal and warm atmosphere and offers the young talents plenty of opportunity for exchange and fellowship, including a free supporting program. The auditions are open to the public and admission is free. We want to make the competition a celebration for everyone involved, a holistic, impressive and very special event that stands out from other competitions due to its quality, content concept and family atmosphere and focuses on the development of young talent. Our values, which are based on a humanistic view of mankind, are summarized in our code of ethics.

We are convinced that more culture leads to more inner education and education of the heart. Our ideal of a competition as a place of encounter between the young talents themselves, their families, the audience, the jury and all those involved provides impetus for understanding and learning from one another. It provides impetus for the musical, pianistic and personal development of the young talents and, with the international nature of the competition, for tolerance and understanding between cultures. In 2023, both Ukrainian and Russian participants played in the competition.

On our homepage we have therefore also quoted the great pianist Rudolf Buchbinder:

"The power of music enables a unifying mission that no other language is prepared to achieve on this scale. My small part in this is my ten fingers, my head, my heart and the black and white keys."

We are the only international piano competition in Hessen with this target group and concept and even the only international competition of its kind in Germany that places so much emphasis on cooperation, learning from each other and individual support.

So wrote PianoNews 2023:

"But the International Piano Competition for Young Pianists Kronberg was so professional on all levels that even visitors experienced in competitions were amazed. (...) All in all, this staging of the first International Piano Competition for Young Pianists Kronberg was a complete success, because the performances on stage, the wonderful organization and the overall atmosphere had something so pleasant that one was edified that a competition can also achieve this."

It is our deepest wish to realize this in all future events.