Ching-Yun Hu Wins Top Prize at World Piano Competition
BUENA PARK, Calif. — In July, Yamaha artist Ching-Yun Hu captured the Gold Medal and First Prize at the prestigious 2007 World Piano Competition held in Cincinnati. She won the gold with her performance of Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 3.
Previously, she won the 2006 Olga Koussevitzky International Piano Competition, the 2003 Kosciuszko Foundation Chopin Piano Competition, the 2003 California International Young Artist Competition, the 2001 Puicerda International Piano Competition in Spain, and, at 17, the 1999 8th Chopin International Competition of Taipei, among numerous other top prizes. Hu made her soloist debut at the age of 13 with the Poland Capella Cracoviensis Chamber Orchestra, and has since performed extensively throughout the world, garnering high critical acclaim.
While the young Taiwan-born pianist admits it's a heady thrill to receive top honors, she's firmly planted in reality when considering the elements of artistic success. "I see myself maturing as an artist and person, and interpreting music as a result of that. I always measure my accomplishments by the growth of my musicianship, and not by my career," says Hu. "If my performances continue to bring me the happiness of sharing music with people around the globe, I hope this success will come from the maturity and warmth of a human being, a musician, who gives beauty, inspirations and kindness to the world."
"Playing in competitions should be the same as playing in concerts," Hu continues. "Of course, in a competition situation, you can play your very best and be loved by the general public, and be eliminated. Or, you can feel unsatisfied with your own performances and win the first prize. The judgment of music is very subjective. My goals in competing are always to prepare my program as solidly as I can and to bring the music alive with an open heart. In the process, if I touch people's hearts with my performance, I am very happy. My desire is to lift audiences from their everyday life to a state of wonder and beauty."
Hu received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where she studied with Herbert Stessin and Yamaha artist Oxana Yablonskaya, among others. She says becoming a Yamaha artist in 2005 "has opened many doors for me. Any pianist would tell you how lucky they are if they perform on superb instruments all the time. That is precisely the case with Yamaha. Besides the instruments, everyone at Yamaha Artist Services, Inc. (YASI) – James Steeber, Makia Matsumura, Magdalena Baczewska, Max Michimoto – works just as hard on all levels as artists bringing music to the audience," she adds. "Yamaha pianos are the most consistent in quality of any other brand I know. There is so much care put into these instruments, and Yamaha's passion is to make the best possible instrument for any concert stage."
Steeber, YASI's Acting Director, adds, "Ching-Yun's first impression on me, when I met her as a student in one of our master classes, was great and immediate. It was obvious that there was something qualitative which set her substantially apart from most of the students I had been hearing. I realized that she was already playing on the level of a professional, and that I was a privileged witness. Her success in the World Piano Competition was more of an expectation than a surprise."
On September 22, Hu will offer a recital for the Rachmaninoff Society, featuring the music of Ravel, Rachmaninoff and transcriptions of Strauss/Schulz-Evler and Bach/Alexander Siloti. The transcriptions by Siloti (Rachmaninoff's cousin and teacher, and a teacher at The Juilliard School) were recently discovered and Hu's performance will be a world premiere. The same program will be offered September 24 at Yamaha Artist Services, Inc..
Hu made her Lincoln Center debut to a sold-out house at Alice Tully Hall in March 2007, and the prominent music critic Harris Goldsmith wrote: "She conveyed fervor and excellence along with the touching moments of lyricism in the Rachmaninoff Sonata No. 2. Chopin Study in A minor was played with almost indecent airborne ease." Hu will offer a much-anticipated return performance at Alice Tully Hall in December 2008, and will also present a recital at Carnegie Hall during the 2007-2008 season.
In the words of piano authority David Dubal, radio host of WQXR's The World of the Piano, "Ching-Yun Hu is a pianist of power, poetry, color and virtuosity…Don't miss her!"
For more information, visit www.chingyunhu.com.
For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; or e-mail infostation@yamaha.com.
 Yamaha artist Ching Yun Hu prevails at the prestigious 2007 World Piano Competition, held in Cinncinati. |
While the young Taiwan-born pianist admits it's a heady thrill to receive top honors, she's firmly planted in reality when considering the elements of artistic success. "I see myself maturing as an artist and person, and interpreting music as a result of that. I always measure my accomplishments by the growth of my musicianship, and not by my career," says Hu. "If my performances continue to bring me the happiness of sharing music with people around the globe, I hope this success will come from the maturity and warmth of a human being, a musician, who gives beauty, inspirations and kindness to the world."
"Playing in competitions should be the same as playing in concerts," Hu continues. "Of course, in a competition situation, you can play your very best and be loved by the general public, and be eliminated. Or, you can feel unsatisfied with your own performances and win the first prize. The judgment of music is very subjective. My goals in competing are always to prepare my program as solidly as I can and to bring the music alive with an open heart. In the process, if I touch people's hearts with my performance, I am very happy. My desire is to lift audiences from their everyday life to a state of wonder and beauty."
Hu received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where she studied with Herbert Stessin and Yamaha artist Oxana Yablonskaya, among others. She says becoming a Yamaha artist in 2005 "has opened many doors for me. Any pianist would tell you how lucky they are if they perform on superb instruments all the time. That is precisely the case with Yamaha. Besides the instruments, everyone at Yamaha Artist Services, Inc. (YASI) – James Steeber, Makia Matsumura, Magdalena Baczewska, Max Michimoto – works just as hard on all levels as artists bringing music to the audience," she adds. "Yamaha pianos are the most consistent in quality of any other brand I know. There is so much care put into these instruments, and Yamaha's passion is to make the best possible instrument for any concert stage."
Steeber, YASI's Acting Director, adds, "Ching-Yun's first impression on me, when I met her as a student in one of our master classes, was great and immediate. It was obvious that there was something qualitative which set her substantially apart from most of the students I had been hearing. I realized that she was already playing on the level of a professional, and that I was a privileged witness. Her success in the World Piano Competition was more of an expectation than a surprise."
On September 22, Hu will offer a recital for the Rachmaninoff Society, featuring the music of Ravel, Rachmaninoff and transcriptions of Strauss/Schulz-Evler and Bach/Alexander Siloti. The transcriptions by Siloti (Rachmaninoff's cousin and teacher, and a teacher at The Juilliard School) were recently discovered and Hu's performance will be a world premiere. The same program will be offered September 24 at Yamaha Artist Services, Inc..
Hu made her Lincoln Center debut to a sold-out house at Alice Tully Hall in March 2007, and the prominent music critic Harris Goldsmith wrote: "She conveyed fervor and excellence along with the touching moments of lyricism in the Rachmaninoff Sonata No. 2. Chopin Study in A minor was played with almost indecent airborne ease." Hu will offer a much-anticipated return performance at Alice Tully Hall in December 2008, and will also present a recital at Carnegie Hall during the 2007-2008 season.
In the words of piano authority David Dubal, radio host of WQXR's The World of the Piano, "Ching-Yun Hu is a pianist of power, poetry, color and virtuosity…Don't miss her!"
For more information, visit www.chingyunhu.com.
For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; or e-mail infostation@yamaha.com.