‘The atmosphere was exceptionally energetic and full of excitement’ - Postcard from the Sibelius Violin Competition

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There was only one topic of discussion among the audience after the finals of the International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition 2022: Dmytro Udovychenko and his exceptional interpretation of Shostakovich’s First Concerto. The competition’s location in Finland (next to Russia), the war in Ukraine, the Russian-born conductor Dima Slobodeniouk and the 23-year-old Ukrainian violinist playing such raw, blood-tinged, universal music created a magical combination, arguably containing more musical meaning than anything else in the competition.

The day after the performance, my colleague, who directed the competition television broadcasts and had heard far too many violin concertos by any standards, commented on social media: ‘It is hard to get over this Shostakovich.’ Even my sound engineer colleagues, after a violin-heavy workload of two weeks, told me that never before had it been so silent among the studio crew.

‘An absolutely unbelievable interpretation,’ said jury chair Sakari Oramo privately after the prize ceremony. ‘It proves that such magnificent music is timeless and deals with things that cannot be put into words.’ In my books, that performance alone was quite an achievement, even for a prestigious music competition with a history that goes back to 1965…