Jaeden Izik-Dzurko with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal

A double-prize-winning new force at the piano

Returning under conductor Rafael Payare for a second evening, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal turns the spotlight onto Canadian pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko. He was named gold medallist at the Leeds International Piano Competition in 2024, and became the first Canadian to take the Grand Prize at the Concours musical international de Montréal. Dame Imogen Cooper, Chair of the Leeds Jury, praised Izik-Dzurko for demonstrating “exceptional artistic maturity…a profound ability to captivate and transport the audience”, while Bachtrack named him among its “Rising Stars to Watch” for 2025–26.

Izik-Dzurko performs Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto. Also on the programme is Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben, a musical autobiography scored for the full forces of a late-Romantic orchestra.