The North West Piano Ensemble Society was incorporated in September 2006 with the purpose of organizing and conducting competitions for piano duet/duo and other ensemble combinations for students of piano. These competitions will promote musical excellence, increase both student and public awareness of piano ensemble music and its wide-ranging repertoire, and bring pride to Canada for achievement of those talented in this field.
Founding members of the NWPES include Winfried Rompf, Charles Gorling, Susan Olsen, Trudy Morse and Dorothy Lau. Under this leadership, the first competition was successfully conducted in January 2009 at the Gateway Theatre in Richmond, BC.
The second competition, held in November 2010 at the Norman Rothstein Theatre in Vancouver, saw a new development, namely the addition of a Junior Division for pianists up to the age of sixteen. This division is primarily designed to attract young local talent and to inspire them for growth and musical development in duet/duo playing, which could make them worthy competitors in due course in the Senior Division, which is open to international contestants as well as local.
- Winfried Rompf (President)
