The Sascha Gorodnitzki Foundation has endowed a prize for our competitors. The $1000 Sascha Gorodnitzki Memorial Prize is a judges’ discretionary award given to the competitor who shows great promise but who did not advance to the Finals Round.

Born in Kiev, Sascha Gorodnitzki immigrated as an infant to Brooklyn, NY, where his parents founded a college of music.  A child prodigy, his first teacher was his mother; he later entered The Juilliard Graduate School in 1926, where he worked with Josef Lhevinne.   During his performing career, he toured world-wide, appearing under the direction of such conductors as Fritz Reiner, Leopold Stokowski, and Pierre Monteux.

In 1932, he began teaching at The Juilliard School and was there for nearly a half century until his death in 1986. His legacy is filled with prize winning students, including Eugene Istomin, Garrick Ohlsson, Dennis Russell Davies, Janina Fialkowska and James Barbagallo.  In just one two year period, his students won 40 major awards in world-class competitions. Described by the New York Times as a “perfectionist”, his style of coaching was described as “supportive and intimidating.”

The HHIPC is committed to helping young pianists develop their careers and is therefore honored to be recognized by the Gorodnitzki Foundation with this award.