Paul Salard, 17, has won five awards at the Amsterdam European Piano Competition, including the Grand Prix Youri Egorov. A student at the Nice Conservatory, he is now preparing for competitions at top European schools.
Paul Salard, a young 17-year-old pianist, has won five prizes at the European Piano Competition organized by the Young Pianist Foundation. This competition, held in Amsterdam from February 26 to March 9, brings together young talents from the European Union, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
During the finals on March 9, Paul Salard performed at Muziekgebouw, accompanied by the Dutch symphony orchestra Phion. He played a mandatory piece by the composer Jan-Peter de Graaff as well as a Beethoven concerto. His talent was praised by both the jury and the audience.
The young pianist from Nice won the First Prize, the Prize for Best Chamber Music Interpretation, the Jan-Peter de Graaff Prize, the Audience Award, and the Grand Prix Youri Egorov, awarded unanimously by the jury. This latter prize had only been awarded once in the competition’s eight editions.
Who is Paul Salard?
Paul Salard discovered the piano at the age of 10. His initial objective was to learn to play Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Quickly becoming passionate, he prepared on his own for his entrance exam to the Nice Conservatory. Since then, he has been studying with Amédée Briggen and in 2023 obtained his Music Studies Diploma in four years instead of the usual twelve.
His career took a new turn in 2024 with several international distinctions. He won prizes at the Globe International Competitions in the Netherlands, Samson François in Cagnes-sur-Mer, and Arte Piano in Italy. In August, he won the Vienna Classic Stars competition and in September, the Audience Award in Stuttgart.
Today, Paul Salard is preparing for entrance exams to prestigious European schools, under the guidance of his teachers Amédée Briggen and Nicolas Bringuier. His journey highlights the dynamism of the Nice Conservatory, which supports many talents in achieving musical excellence.