Russian musicians are fighting for the top places at Tchaikovsky Competition in all categories except cello.

Three Russians have made it to the finals in the voice category, two are competing for the main prize for best piano performance and one is standing against his foreign rivals in the violin finals.

The voice category will see performances from eight finalists. Sopranos Elena Guseva and Angelina Nikitchenko along with tenor Aleksey Tatarintsev will be representing Russia. South Korean sopranos Sun Young Seo, Jung Nan Yoon and bass Jong Min Park, and two Mongolian singers, baritones Chimed Enkhtaivan and Enkhbat Amartuvshin are to compete against the Russians on June 29 at the Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg.

The final recitals of the piano category finalists began on June 27 and saw the performances of Russian pianist Daniil Trifonov, Ukrainian Aleksandr Romanovsky and Seong Jin Cho from South Korea. On June 28 they will be joined by two more finalists - Russian Aleksey Chernov and South Korean Yeol Eum Son. The recitals will finish on June 30.

The violin finals also feature five competitors. Among them Americans Nigel Armstrong and Eric Silberger, Israeli Itamar Zorman, South Korean Jehye Lee and Russian Sergey Dogadin. Their final recitals span three days from June 27 through June 29.

Winners in all categories will be named on June 30.

The International Tchaikovsky Competition is held every four years. It was first held over 50 years ago in 1958. This contest has become one of the major events in the international music community. In past events of the Tchaikovsky Competition, such renowned names as pianists Van Cliburn, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Mikhail Pletnev, Grigory Sokolov; violinists Viktor Tretiakov, Gidon Kremer, Victoria Mullova; cellists David Geringas, Nathaniel Rosen, Antonio Meneses and singers Evgeny Nesterenko, Elena Obraztsova and Deborah Voigt emerged and gained world praise and fame.

This year the competition is hosted by both Moscow and St. Petersburg.
sections: Culture