Seong-Jin Cho - Winner of the 17th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition (2015)

South Korea's Seong-Jin Cho, aged 21, was announced winner of the prestigious 17th international Frederic Chopin piano competition in the Polish capital, Warsaw on the evening of 20th October 2015. The competition, held every five years, is one of the few in which pianists play pieces by a single composer. 84 pianists aged 16 to 30, from 45 countries, qualified for the 2015 four-stage series of final recitals held over a three-week period in October.

The competition opened on 1 October with a gala concert featuring Martha Argerich and finished with the Grand Finale recitals by the top 10 pianists on 18-20 October. The Chopin Competition is renowned for discovering the world’s most talented pianists. Past winners include Maurizio Pollini, Martha Argerich, Krystian Zimmerman, Yundi Li and Rafał Blechacz.

This all-Chopin disc was made from live performances from the competition's finals.

Deutsche Grammophon is proud to present the debut solo album from Seong-Jin Cho, winner of the 17th International Chopin Piano Competition. Cho took the coveted first prize, among the most prestigious titles in the world of classical music. He was named winner on Tuesday 20 October 2015, following three weeks and four stages of competition in Warsaw. The recording, set for international release on 18 of December, contains highlights from the 21-year-old South Korean pianist s recital rounds. This live album marks the start of a long-term collaboration between DG and the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, created to promote the work of outstanding interpreters of Chopin s music to the widest possible audience.

The International Chopin Piano Competition was founded in Warsaw in 1927 and has been held every five years since 1955. It stands today as the world s premiere competition for classical pianists, thanks not least to its commitment to artistic excellence and distinguished track record in discovering exceptional musical talent.

The rollcall of Chopin Competition winners is second to none in its concentration of piano legends, including DG artists Maurizio Pollini, Martha Argerich, Krystian Zimerman, Yundi Li and Rafa Blechacz. The equally remarkable list of runners-up includes Vladimir Ashkenazy and Mitsuko Uchida, both signed to DG s sister label Decca.

Seong-Jin Cho was born in Seoul, South Korea, on 28 May 1994. He won the International Fryderyk Chopin Competition for Young Pianists in 2008 and took third prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 2011. Cho, who lives in Paris, has already performed with leading orchestras and conductors, including the Mariinsky Orchestra and Valery Gergiev, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and Myung-Whun Chung, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic and Yuri Temirkanov, and the Russian National Orchestra with Mikhail Pletnev.

It has been a wonderful experience for me to be part of this great Competition and a dream come true to be named as winner of its first prize, observed Seong-Jin Cho. Chopin s music tells us so much about the human condition and speaks directly to the heart. I hope that this Deutsche Grammophon recording will move all those who hear it.

Over 450 performers born from 1985 to 1999, from 45 countries, applied to participate in this year s International Chopin Piano Competition. The Chopin Institute s Admission Committee invited 160 of these to perform in the Competition s Preliminary Round in Warsaw in April, 77 of whom were chosen by the jury to contest the three final stages from 3 to 16 October. Seong-Jin Cho emerged victorious from the 10 pianists selected for the Grand Finale. In addition to a cash prize of 30,000, he also received the Fryderyk Chopin Society Prize for the best performance of a polonaise.

Deutsche Grammophon is delighted to launch its new strategic partnership with the Fryderyk Chopin Institute with an album that captures the passion and beauty of Seong-Jin Cho s Chopin, comments Costa Pilavachi, Universal Music Group International s Senior Vice President of Classical A&R. After three weeks of intense competition and extraordinary music-making, we were captivated by his wonderful winning performances and believe that he is destined to become one of the finest artists of his generation. The International Chopin Piano Competition sets the benchmark by which all other music competitions are judged. It is the king of such events and, as such, attracts worldwide attention to the very best in classical music. We are thrilled to be connecting the Chopin Competition with a large new audience, through our social media campaign and live streams from the finals, and now with the release of Seong-Jin Cho s DG debut album.

Tracklist:

1. No. 1 in C major
2. No. 2 in A minor
3. No. 3 in G major
4. No. 4 in E minor
5. No. 5 in D major
6. No. 6 in B minor
7. No. 7 in A major
8. No. 8 in F sharp minor
9. No. 9 in E major
10. No. 10 in C sharp minor
11. No. 11 in B major
12. No. 12 in G sharp minor
13. No. 13 in F sharp major
14. No. 14 in E flat minor
15. No. 15 in D flat major
16. No. 16 in B flat minor
17. No. 17 in A flat major
18. No. 18 in F minor
19. No. 19 in E flat major
20. No. 20 in C minor
21. No. 21 in B flat major
22. No. 22 in G minor
23. No. 23 in F major
24. No. 24 in D minor
25. Nocturne in C minor op. 48/1
26. 1. Grave Doppio movimento
27. 2. Scherzo
28. 3. Marche funèbre Lento
29. 4. Finale. Presto
30. Polonaise in A flat major op. 53