Canadian pianist wins one of the world's most prestigious piano competitions
CBC
A Canadian has won one of the world's most prestigious piano competitions.
The jury of the 18th Frederic Chopin international piano competition chose Bruce (Xiaoyu) Liu of Canada as the winner of the 40,000-euro ($57,000 Cdn) first prize in the 18th Frederic Chopin international piano competition that often launches pianists' world careers.
The announcement came just hours after Liu played as the last entrant among the 12 finalists, performing Chopin's concerto in E minor, opus 11 with the orchestra at the packed National Philharmonic in Warsaw. His performance was met with huge applause.
Liu is from Montreal. He graduated with great distinction from the Conservatoire de Montréal, where he studied with Richard Raymond, and later studied at the Université de Montréal, working with Dang Thai Son.
"Oh my God. I don't know what to say, honestly," Liu said soon after learning he won.
"We have been dreaming with all these people here for this prestigious stage," the 24-year-old said in English.
"Being able to play Chopin in Warsaw is one of the best things you can imagine, of course, so I'm truly honoured for this award, of course, and for this jury's trust and for all the warmth I have received in recent days," Liu said.
Second prize and 30,000 euros ($43,000 Cdn) went to Alexander Gadjiev, representing Italy and Slovenia and to Kyohei Sorita of Japan, while the third prize of 20,000 euros ($28,000 Cdn) was awarded to Martin Garcia Garcia of Spain.
High ranking in the renowned competition opens the world's top concert halls to the pianists and pave the way to recordings with best known record companies.
Held every five years, the competition was postponed from 2020 by the pandemic.
Jury head Katarzyna Popowa-Zydron has said that apart from being excellent pianists, the participants should also show sensitivity and bring freshness to the music.
"I try to look for a rapport between the performer and Chopin," Popowa-Zydron said in an interview early in the competition.
Music is a "message from a person and [the musicians] should know what kind of person Chopin was."
Bowing to their artistry, the 17-member jury allowed two more finalists this year than usual.
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