Saxophonist Pinchuk spoke about participation in the international competition

I came, I saw, I won

Dmitry Pinchuk, a 17-year-old third-year music college student, became the winner of one of the world's most prestigious saxophonist competitions. Having won the first time, Pinchuk does not plan to stop there, although the Sachs competition has long been his dream.

«This competition is the most prestigious for me. Since childhood, I dreamed of taking part. The victory was a big surprise for me. I was very pleased with my performance. I thought that at that age it was impossible, «I came for the first time and immediately won. I really hoped to enter the top three, but when I found out that I won, I was pleasantly surprised,» said Pinchuk.
The young winner shared that he overcame the most difficult stage of the competition at the very beginning. “The first round was the most difficult for me, but in the third round everything was much easier than I expected,” he said.

Music outside of politics

The competition was very high: the participants had three rounds, and in each of them there were high-level performers. The musician emphasized that, in his opinion, the guys from Russia were “head and shoulders above everyone else,” and participant Vladimir Petskus, who took sixth place, deserved higher marks. The third representative of Russia, Mikhail Kazakov, also took third place.

However, despite the competition, the atmosphere at the competition, according to Pinchuk, was friendly. “It was not like a sporting competition, but like a pleasant pastime,” the musician noted.
Also, contrary to the agenda of canceling Russian culture abroad, participation in the competition for Russian musicians took place without unpleasant incidents or provocations.
«There were no provocations. Everyone was very friendly, there was no racial discrimination or statements: music, one might say, was outside of politics,» Pinchuk emphasized.
Such a long journey, fortunately, did not affect the performance. Pinchuk admitted that it took him a couple of days to recover, and there was a week between the arrival and the performance.

I’m only going for victory

The preparation for the competition, according to the musician, was not that long: he waited much longer for the opportunity to participate. “The wait for the competition was about eight years for me. It was the preparation, the analysis of the program, that began somewhere a little less than a year ago,” Pinchuk said.

The next unconquered peak for the musician will be the Andorra Sax Fest, which will take place in Andorra in late March-early April 2024. For Pinchuk, participation in this competition will be his fourth attempt to gain leadership.
«The first time I made it to the semi-finals, the second time I took fourth place, the last time — only second. Now I'm only going for victory,» he said.

Landmark — teacher

Pinchuk delicately commented on his global plans, saying that he does not have a specific goal, but in his creativity he is guided by his teacher.

«In the abstract, I want to achieve the same great success as my teacher Nikita Zimin… At the moment he is the best classical saxophonist in the world, by far,» said Pinchuk.
Zimin is the President of the Eurasian Association of Saxophonists, a member of the Guild of Young Performing Musicians of the Russian Musical Union, a teacher at the Fryderyk Chopin Moscow State Conservatory of Music and a Grand Prix winner of the most prestigious international competitions. He, like his student, participated in the Sax saxophonist competition, but did not win the first time: Zimin first took second place, and then four years later, in 2014, he came again and won.
Zimin toured Russia a lot and, in addition, gathered his students from different parts of the country — talented guys who now occupy some of the highest places in prestigious world competitions.
Pinchuk added that Zimin was a member of the jury of the Sachs competition, so he could not give grades to his students. Moreover, according to strict rules, they could not communicate with each other during the competition.

About the competition

The international music competition is named after the inventor of the saxophone, Adolphe Sax. It is held every four years in the musician’s hometown and is considered the largest and one of the most significant in the world of saxophone music. In 2023, 264 candidates from 19 countries took part. In addition to three participants from Russia, the six winners included two participants from Japan and one from Italy. The auditions took place in the hall of the Dinan Cathedral. In the final, the musicians had to perform two pieces each with a total duration of about 40 minutes. All finalists received new instruments as a gift.