The gala concert of the 5th International Composers Competition, organized by the National Music and Global Culture Society (NMGCS), has been held at Bruno Walter Auditorium in New York's Lincoln Center.
This was announced in a statement by NMGCS President Nargiz Aliyarova, an Honored Artist of Azerbaijan and pianist.
The project was implemented with the support of Azerbaijan's State Committee for Work with the Diaspora. Its main goal is to promote Azerbaijani music and the rich folk heritage of Turkic peoples internationally.
This year's competition attracted composers from 19 countries across five continents. In total, the five competitions organised by NMGCS have brought together composers from more than 45 countries, who have created around 150 new musical works.
The jury was chaired by Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer Melinda Wagner. The other jury members were Reiko Füting, chair of the composition department at the Manhattan School of Music, and Azerbaijani composer Elmir Mirzoyev.
The competition winners were Shafag Alijioglu of Turkiye, who received first prize; Federico Beilinson of Argentina, who took second place; and Xun Wang, representing China and the United States, who won third prize.
The gala concert opened with a performance by Nargiz Aliyarova, NMGCS president, pianist and Honored Artist of Azerbaijan.
The programme featured works by the composers who took first, second and third places in the competition. It also included musical pieces from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkiye.
During the concert, the Critics' Choice Award from the Ishak Mavashev Foundation was presented to Turkmen composer Rovshen Nepesov. The foundation's executive director, Rafael Nektalov, attended the ceremony.
The gala concert in New York made an important contribution to promoting Azerbaijani music and the cultural heritage of Turkic peoples worldwide, while also strengthening international musical ties.