Piano competitions and their importance for the development of piano students at Schools of Art

This diploma thesis focuses on the phenomenon of the piano competitions. The main aim of the theoretical part is to describe the historical development of the piano competitions and to analyse the world's most recognized piano competitions. The following chapter discusses the topic of a piano career. It provides an extensive knowledge of the piano competitions, gathered from the famous pianists and piano teachers. Their pedagogical statements have been used in the practical part of the thesis to define hypothesis for the research survey, and also to gain a better insight into the use of the piano competitions as a pedagogical tool in the piano students development. The final part analyses the survey results and summarizes the piano competitions that are organised for young pianists in the Czech Republic. In addition, it provides practical recommendations for young students and their teachers on how to prepare for a piano competition