Lim Yunchan's Van Cliburn Competition Live Album Achieves Gold Status Immediately Upon Release

Universal Music announced that pianist Lim Yunchan's live recording of the finals from the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, "Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3," achieved Gold status upon its release on May 16.

Gold is one of the certification levels for classical album sales, with the categories being Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. In the Korean market, the Gold level is awarded to albums that sell more than 5,000 copies.

Lim Yunchan's latest album generated significant buzz by ranking No. 1 across all genres on YES24?including LP, domestic license CD, and imported CD?on the very day pre-orders began, April 24.

In June 2022, Lim Yunchan became the youngest winner in the 60-year history of the Van Cliburn Competition by capturing the gold medal at the age of 18. At that time, he also swept the Audience Award and the Best Performance of a New Work Award.

The YouTube live video of Lim Yunchan performing Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 during the competition finals also gained global attention. As of May 2025, the video has surpassed approximately 17.26 million views.

This album features the live performance, mixed with Dolby Atmos technology, allowing listeners to experience spatial audio on digital streaming platforms.

After winning the competition, Lim Yunchan signed an exclusive contract with Decca Classics and released the album "Chopin: Etudes" in April 2024, once again making a global impact. "Chopin: Etudes" achieved quadruple platinum status in Korea and swept awards such as BBC Music Awards' "Album of the Year," "Newcomer of the Year," and "Instrumental Award," as well as Gramophone Awards' "Young Artist of the Year" and "Piano Album of the Year," and Diapason d'Or's "Young Artist of the Year." Lim Yunchan has firmly established himself as one of the most acclaimed pianists worldwide.

Jenny Murphy, head of Decca Classics, stated, "At just 21 years old, Lim Yunchan has become one of the fastest-growing classical artists in streaming history with only a single debut album, and he has attracted one of the most diverse and wide-ranging audiences in classical music. Achieving such success with a work that has been reinterpreted hundreds of times over the past 200 years is a testament to his overwhelming talent and the captivating quality of his performances. Decca Classics is delighted to have begun this collaboration with Lim Yunchan so successfully."