FERHUNDE ERKÄ°N and MITHAT FENMEN Special Awards
The Ankara Piano Competition and Festival presents special awards in honor of two iconic figures of Turkish pianism, Ferhunde Erkin and Mithat Fenmen. These awards aim not only to celebrate the invaluable contributions they made to music but also to inspire young pianists to follow in the footsteps of these great masters.
The Ferhunde Erkin Special Prize will reward an artist known for excellence in piano and creative interpretative power, while the Mithat Fenmen Special Prize will be awarded to another talented pianist noted for their passionate approach to the piano and technical brilliance.
Both prizes are designed to recognize not only the technical skills of the participants but also their musical depth and stage presence. These prestigious awards will provide the winners with the opportunity for greater recognition on international stages, contributing significantly to their artistic journey.
Ferhunde (Remzi) Erkin (July 8, 1909, Istanbul – July 11, 2007, Ankara)
She is Turkey's first female concert pianist and piano educator. She is an important figure in the fields of Turkish pianism and piano education. Erkin is known for her interpretations that blend Western classical music with Turkish folk music. She has achieved great success in both piano pedagogy and her concert career. She was the first to perform 22 piano concertos in Turkey.
She performed with world-renowned conductors such as Paul Hindemith, Ernst Praetorius, and Hans Rosbaud. In her recitals, she always included works by Turkish composers and frequently performed both the Concerto and Concertino composed for piano by her husband, Ulvi Cemal Erkin. She gave numerous chamber music concerts with famous cellists such as Antonio Saldarelli, Martin Bochmann, and Gaspar Cassadó, as well as violinist Licco Amar and her brother Necdet Remzi Atak. She also included contemporary music in her concert repertoire.
In 1943, during World War II, she performed her husband Ulvi Cemal Erkin’s piano concerto with the Berlin City Orchestra, conducted by Fritz Zaun, while the city was under bombardment.
Among her students were Kamuran Gündemir, who continued Ferhunde Erkin’s piano school and later trained renowned pianists such as Fazıl Say, Muhittin DürrüoÄŸlu, Emre Elivar, and Emrecan Yavuz. Another notable student was Hüseyin Sermet, who first encountered the piano under her guidance.
Ali Mithat Fenmen (January 24, 1916, Istanbul – October 19, 1982, Istanbul)
A Turkish composer and pianist, he was not only a pianist but also a composer and educator who made significant contributions to Turkish music and piano literature. As a composer, pianist, piano teacher, music writer, and music publisher, he played an important role in the development of polyphonic music in Turkey.
Mithat Fenmen studied piano with Alfred Cortot and harmony and composition with Nadia Boulanger. He was a student of Joseph Haas in the composition department at the Munich State Conservatory. As a virtuoso, Fenmen gave recitals and concerts throughout Europe and accompanied renowned musicians who visited Turkey. He is known for being the first to perform major works of the piano literature in Turkey. Under the concept of "first performances" in Turkey, he also tackled chamber music compositions and, through the chamber music ensembles he formed, contributed to the interpretation of key works in this field.
In 1954, he married British ballet artist Beatrice Appleyard and served as the director of the Ankara State Conservatory twice. Fenmen, who taught piano for 43 years, was instrumental in discovering highly talented children. Among the students he introduced to music are prominent names such as Selman Ada, Ä°dil Biret, the Pekinel Sisters, Gülsin Onay, and Fazıl Say.