Highly Percussive

During September and October 2023, The Seventh IPEA International Percussion Competition was successfully held in its first live edition after the pandemic. The competition is hosted by Shanghai Conservatory of Music, organized by The International Percussion Center of Shanghai Conservatory of Music and International Percussion Education Association (IPEA, founded in 2014), and co-organized by the Chinese Musicians Association Percussion Institute, Percussive Arts Society (China Branch) and Drum Corps International. It aims to promote the development of percussion education, enhance communication between international music colleges and percussion educational institutions, and create a high-level communication platform with international perspectives and standards. 

This year, all finalists had to perform a work by French composer Emmanuel Séjourné: "Pacific Concerto" for Percussion Solo and Symphonic Orchestra, an IPEA commission especially for this competition. Brilliantly performed by the Conservatory's own Symphony Orchestra under Ke Zhou, three finalists created an exciting and emotional atmosphere in the packed Shangyin Opera House. Even for the non-percussionist, it was amazing to hear and see the differences between the three players. With their set-ups being entirely different from each other, they also put different weight on certain instruments and certain parts of the work, thus presenting a truly fascinating, while entertaining, evening.