Violinists Yudaun, Choi Songha, and Ana Im
Finals from the 27th... 12 Compete
Korea Wins in 2022 Cello, 2023 Baritone
Three Korean violinists have advanced to the finals of the Queen Elisabeth Competition, where 12 contestants are competing. Following cellist Choi Ha-young in 2022 and baritone Kim Tae-han last year, attention is focused on whether Korea will produce a winner for the third consecutive year.
On the 19th (local time), the competition organizing committee announced the list of 12 finalists, which includes all three Korean violinists who reached the semifinals: Yoo Da-yoon (23), Choi Song-ha (24), and Ana Im (27). A total of 24 contestants competed in the semifinals held from the 13th to the 18th.
Among the 12 finalists, six are from the United States, the largest group, with one each from Japan, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan.
The final stage will take place over six days from the 27th of this month to the 1st of next month. Each day, two contestants will perform with the Belgian National Orchestra, conducted by Antony Hermus from the Netherlands.
The 12 finalists will stay for a week at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel, a classical higher education and agency institution located in Waterloo, on the outskirts of Brussels, to prepare for the finals. They must focus solely on their competition preparations, strictly isolated from the outside world, with no use of computers or mobile phones allowed. This unique rule of the Queen Elisabeth Competition drew attention last year when the film "Music Chapel," based on this setting, was released. The 2019 documentary film "Finalist" also tells the story of the finalists of the Queen Elisabeth Competition.
The finalists will perform both free-choice pieces and designated works. This year’s competition piece, composed by Thierry Escaich, a French composer and organist, will be premiered on the first day of the finals. A competition official stated about the piece, "Inspired by Gregorian music, it is expected that each performer will bring their own interpretation to the various variations."
The final winner will be announced around midnight after the last final performance on the 1st of next month. The winner will receive a prize of 25,000 euros (approximately 35 million KRW) awarded by the Belgian royal family.
Established in 1937, the Queen Elisabeth Competition is one of the most prestigious international competitions in the world. It alternates annually among four categories: vocal, violin, piano, and cello.
Korea has produced a total of five winners so far: three in the vocal category and two in the instrumental category. The first Korean to win was soprano Hong Hye-ran, who won in 2011. She was followed by soprano Hwang Su-mi in 2014. In the instrumental category, violinist Lim Ji-young was the first Korean winner in 2015. In the past two years, cellist Choi Ha-young and baritone Kim Tae-han have won consecutively.
This year’s finalist violinist Choi Song-ha is the younger sibling of 2022 winner cellist Choi Ha-young.
The jury for this year’s competition consists of 15 members, including chair Gilles Ledure, with Korean violinists Kang Dong-seok and Lee Kyung-sun appointed as jurors. Kang Dong-seok was also the first Korean to place in the Queen Elisabeth Competition, having won third place in the violin category in 1976.
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