Performances + Events
New England Conservatory alumnus Aristo Sham ’20 NEC/Harvard won First Prize at the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition on Saturday, June 7. Sham, who graduated from the NEC/Harvard dual-degree program, also won the Carla and Kelly Thompson Audience Award.
NEC alumnus Evren Ozel ’21, ’23 MM, ’25 AD won Third Prize and received the award for the Best Performance of a Mozart Concerto. Ozel performed Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K. 503, in the semifinal round of the competition.
Sham received a $100,000 cash prize for winning the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Gold Medal, and $2,500 for earning the Audience Award. Ozel received $25,000 for winning the Bronze Medal and $5,000 for the Best Performance of a Mozart Concerto. Both pianists will receive management deals, publicity materials, and performance opportunities. Sham will tour in the United States and abroad and Ozel will embark on a U.S. tour. Each medalist will record an album for the Platoon Records label.
Sham studied at NEC with Victor Rosenbaum and earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University. Ozel studied at NEC with Wha Kyung Byun and earned his artist diploma in the Conservatory’s Institute for Concert Artists. Ozel previously studied at NEC’s Preparatory School.
The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition celebrates the legacy of its namesake, the American pianist who won the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958, and “advances classical piano music throughout the world.”
