BCAM successfully concluded the second edition of the 'Villa de Bilbao' Piano and Violin Competition with the awards ceremony for its winners

• The competition took place last weekend at the Bilbaina Society as part of Bilbomath, a collaboration between the Bilbao City Council and BCAM aimed at promoting internationalization and innovation in talent attraction.

BCAM - Basque Center for Applied Mathematics (a Research Center of Excellence accredited three times with the Severo Ochoa distinction in 2013, 2018, and 2021) organized the second edition of the 'Villa de Bilbao' Competition last weekend, featuring piano and violin categories.

This cultural initiative is part of the '2M: Music & Mathematics' program developed by the Basque Center for Applied Mathematics under the framework of BILBOMATH, a partnership between BCAM and the Bilbao City Council aimed at promoting internationalization and innovation in talent attraction.

With the Bilbaina Society as the venue, over 50 participants took part in different age categories (born between 1993 and 2017). The goal of the 'Villa de Bilbao' Competition is to promote mathematical and musical culture and stimulate the musical development of young pianists. The closing ceremony was attended by Kontxi Claver, Councilor for Economic Development, Trade, Tourism, and Employment; Joxerramon Bengoetxea, Rector of EHU; and José Antonio Lozano, Scientific Director of BCAM.

Here are the winners of the 'Villa de Bilbao' Piano and Violin Competition:

• Violin Section Category D: Miriam Mendoza
• Violin Section Category F: Katalin Madariaga
• Violin Section Category G: Franchesska Forero (€500 scholarship)
• Violin Section Category H: Gontzal Rodríguez (€750 scholarship)
• Violin Section Category I: Marianna Atria (€1000 scholarship)
• Piano Section Category B: Aroa Garcia
• Piano Section Category G: Sofia Meladze (€500 scholarship)
• Piano Section Category H: Xabier Boixet

​​​​​​​The first prize winners in each category received a plaque and diploma at the closing ceremony, while all other awarded contestants received a medal and diploma.

This event was made possible with the collaboration of the Bilbao City Council; UPV/EHU; Juan Crisóstomo de Arriaga Conservatory of Bilbao; Bilbaina Society; and Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science.
Artistic direction: Luca Fanelli (Ikerbasque Research Professor at EHU and BCAM, pianist); Co-artistic direction: Ales Larrazabal (Bilbao Conservatory, pianist); Rubén Darío Reina (RTVE Orchestra, violinist); and Maite Villate (Bilbao Conservatory, pianist).