As Russian Attacks Continue At Home, Ukrainian Pianist Plays On

Arlington TX

08 March, 2022

7:00 PM

Description

By Marcheta Fornoff, Fort Worth Report March 8, 2022 Getting out of one's own head can be difficult for any performer, but the task weighed heavily on Dmytro Choni, who performed Tuesday in Fort Worth as Russian forces continued attacks on his home country of Ukraine. "It's not easy at all," Choni said in response to whether he had trouble focusing on his performance. "Of course I'm thinking of my parents, of my family who are still in Ukraine. But, well, I don't know. I tried to focus on my performance today." He skillfully flew through renditions of Debussy's "The Happy Island," Ginastera's Sonata No. 1, op. 22 and Ligeti's Etude No. 5 "Rainbow" in front of an intimate audience. The crowd applauds as Choni bows after his audition to compete in the 16th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) Of the 72 artists from across the world auditioning for a spot in this summer's Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, he is the sole Ukrainian pianist in a field with just over a dozen Russian competitors. On March 3, the Cliburn issued a statement condemning the Russian attacks on Ukraine and explained its decision to allow Russian pianists to compete. Festival officials noted the history of the competition and its namesake's win at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, which they described as "One of history's greatest testaments to the transcendence of art." To read the full article, click here. Fort Worth Report is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that produces factual, in-depth journalism about city and county government, schools, healthcare, business, and arts and culture in Tarrant County. Always free to read; subscribe to newsletters, read coverage or support our newsroom at fortworthreport.org.