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Two South Korean concert pianists, brothers Lim Dong-hyek (21) and Lim Dong-min (25), have taken third place in the 15th Chopin International Piano Competition. Of the 12 pianists who made it to the final round, it was a fellow countryman of Chopin¡¯s, the Pole Rafal Blechacz, who took the prize home.
One of the world's most influential competitions, the Chopin is held every five years and has brought some of the greatest pianists including Maurizio Pollini, Stanislav Bunin and Martha Argerich to world attention. Along with the Queen Elizabeth Competition and the International Tchaikovsky Competition, it is one of the top three in the world.
This is the first time a Korean musician has taken a prize in the competition, and the biggest achievement for a Korean since Chung Myung-whun came second in the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1974. The Lim brothers will each receive a bronze medal and US$15,000 in cash. In 1996, the two came first and second in the Moscow International Youth Chopin Competition and have, from an early age, been the great hope of Korea¡¯s piano world.
Yet though Dong-hyek and Dong-min are brothers, the character of their music is very different. Chung Jin-woo of Seoul National University says while the older approaches pieces with an air of grandeur and an academic method, the younger has a delicate touch born out of sophisticated technique. With his handsome face and strong stage presence, Dong-hyek already has legions of adoring fans: the number of users registered on his Internet fan club (cafe.daum.net/pianisthyuk) exceeds 36,000. With the support of Martha Argerich, he signed an exclusive contract with EMI in 2002.
Six top placings went to Asians, reaffirming the continent¡¯s recent ascendancy in the music world. Japanese pianists Takashi Yamamoto and Shohei Sekimoto won a joint fourth place, and Ka Ling Colleen Lee from Hong Kong came sixth.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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