Scholtes & Janssens

Lestari Scholtes (1984) and Gwylim Janssens (1985) have been a piano duo since 2003. Currently they are recognized as one of the most promising piano duos of their generation, and leading piano duo from the Netherlands.
Their 2009 Carnegie Hall debut, as part of the IBLA Grand Prize winners USA tour, was praised as ‘it could well have been 25 or 30 fingers, so big and well integrated was the sound. Terrific duo in top form'. The duo is well known for their brilliant sound and marvellous technical skills, presenting very intense and energetic performances. This has lead them to performances throughout The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Israel and the USA. They regularly play in prestigious venues like the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. Their performances have been broadcast by radio and television in multiple countries. Furthermore they performed several times with the Orchestra of Brabant.
The Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo has won many prizes among which the Ravel Award at the IBLA Grand Prize International Music Competition 2008 in Sicily, Italy and the Special Prize of the Music Academy Bialystok at the Fourth International Piano Duo Competition 2008 in Poland, the Sara Lahat Duo Prize for the most outstanding duo of the Tel-Hai International Piano Master Classes 2007 in Israel, and a first prize at the Princess Christina Competition 2003 and 2004.
In May 2010, the Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo won the very prestigious Vriendenkrans Competition of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam. They were presented as the first winners of the Radio4 Talent of the Year 2010. The finals, live broadcasted on the Dutch national classical radio, followed after a successful tour in the concert series 'The Debut' in all major concert halls of The Netherlands. In the preliminary rounds of the competition, in autumn 2008, the duo won already the Radio4 Scholarship. In 2010, the duo won also the Concours Musical de France in Paris in the highest category, the 3rd prize in the IVth International Piano Competition of the Republic of San Marino “Allegro Vivo” and the 2nd prize in the 14th Torneo Internazionale di Musica in Verona.
The duo has won all prizes at the International Chamber Music Competition Almere 2009, The Netherlands. They were winners of the jury prize, the audience prize and the KRO Radio Young Talent Award. In the summer of 2009 the duo has won the second prize at the International Concerto Competition of the Tel Hai International Piano Master Classes in Israel. As a result of this prize the duo performed with the Israel Symphony Orchestra Rishon LeZion in October.
In April and May 2009 The Scholtes-Janssens Piano Duo has made a concert tour throughout the United States on the invitation of the IBLA International Music Foundation. They have performed in North Dakota, Virginia, Arkansas and New York, where they had their debut in the famous Carnegie Hall.
In July 2009 Lestari and Gwylim were jurors at the IBLA Grand Prize International Music Competition, which was held on Sicily, Italy.
As a duo they are studying with the piano duo Sivan Silver & Gil Garburg at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater (University of Music and Drama) in Hanover, Germany. Together they have taken many master classes with e.g. Igor Roma, Nikolai Petrov, Alexander Tamir, Victor Derevianko, Alon Goldstein, Peter Takács and Menahem Pressler. The latter was broadcast on Dutch national television.