First Prize Awarded

Then Chairman of The American Institute of Polish Culture, Blanka Rosenstiel awards the first prize at the first US Chopin Competition to Dean Kramer. Two years later, in 1977, Mrs. Rosenstiel established the Chopin Foundation of the United States as a result of the 1975 Competition's success. Forced to leave Poland during the WWII, Mrs. Rosenstiel carried Chopin's music in her heart as a seed that she dreamed of planting when she moved to the United States. Dean Kramer, in addition to placing 5th in the 1975 Warsaw Competition, has enjoyed a successful performance career and has been a member of the piano faculty at the University of Oregon since 1983. He served on the National Chopin Piano Competition jury in 2015 and 2020.