South Korean pianist (born 2004)
Musical artist
Yunchan Lim
(
Korean
:
임윤찬
; born March 20, 2004) is a
South Korean
pianist
. In 2022, he gained widespread recognition when he became the youngest person ever to win the
Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
at age 18.
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
Early life and education
[
edit
]
Lim was born in
Siheung
,
South Korea
. He started to take piano lessons when he was seven years old, and entered the Music Academy of
Seoul Arts Center
a year later.
[7]
[8]
He began to take the piano more seriously when he was nine years old.
[8]
At thirteen, he was accepted into the
Korea National University of Arts
, where he began to study with his current teacher, Minsoo Sohn.
[9]
[10]
In the fall of 2023, Lim transferred his studies with Sohn to the
New England Conservatory of Music
in
Boston
.
[11]
Career
[
edit
]
2018?2022: Early career
[
edit
]
In 2018, Lim received both the Second Prize and Chopin Prize at the Cleveland International Piano Competition for Young Artists, where he performed with the
Cleveland Orchestra
in the final round.
[12]
[7]
In the same year, he was the youngest participant in the
Thomas & Evon Cooper International Competition
at the
Oberlin College and Conservatory
, where he won the Third Prize and the Audience Prize.
[13]
In 2019, he became the youngest ever winner of the
Isang Yun Competition
at fifteen years old.
[7]
In 2020, Lim was featured in the recording of the “2020 Young Musicians of Korea” album, which was organized by the
Korean Broadcasting System
and released in the same year.
[7]
2022?present: Van Cliburn Competition victory and present career
[
edit
]
In June 2022, Lim won the Gold Medal at the
16th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
in
Fort Worth, Texas
, making him the youngest winner in the competition’s history. The prize came with $100,000
USD
and career management for three years.
[14]
He also won two special prizes, the Audience Award and the Best Performance of?a New Work.
[7]
His final round performance of
Rachmaninoff
’s
Piano Concerto No. 3
is currently the most viewed video of the piece on
YouTube
. It peaked at #24 on YouTube’s global trending list and accumulated more than 10 million views in a span of eight months.
[7]
Following his win at the Van Cliburn competition, Lim collaborated with orchestras such as the
New York Philharmonic
,
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
,
Los Angeles Philharmonic
,
Lucerne Symphony Orchestra
,
Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra
,
Orchestra of the Music Makers
and the
KBS Symphony Orchestra
.
[8]
In recitals, he has performed at
Wigmore Hall
,
Victoria Concert Hall
,
Fondation Louis Vuitton
,
Seoul Arts Center
, and the
National Concert Hall
in
Taipei
, among many others. He has also made appearances at the
Aspen Music Festival
, the
Bravo! Vail Music Festival
, and the
Ravinia Festival
.
[7]
[15]
In 2023, Lim was included in the
Forbes
30 Under 30
list under the Arts category for Asia.
[16]
On July 7 of the same year, the
Steinway & Sons
label released an album of Lim’s live performance of
Liszt
’s
Transcendental Etudes
from the semi-final round of the Van Cliburn competition. The album debuted at number 5 on
Billboard
's
Traditional Classical Albums
chart.
[17]
In August 2023,
Crescendo
, a feature documentary that follows the
16th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
's proceedings and Lim’s emergence, premiered at the
Jecheon International Music and Film Festival
.
[18]
In October 2023, Lim signed with
Decca Classics
on an exclusive recording contract. His first recording on the label is scheduled for release in Spring 2024.
[19]
Discography
[
edit
]
Awards
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Hernandez, Javier C. (2022-06-19).
"At Cliburn Competition, Pianists From South Korea, Russia and Ukraine Triumph"
.
New York Times
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
Yuk, William (2022-06-23).
"South Korean piano prodigy Yunchan Lim becomes youngest ever to conquer prestigious Van Cliburn"
.
Yahoo News
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
Cantrell, Scott; Diovanni, Tim (2022-06-18).
"South Korean pianist Yunchan Lim, 18, wins the 2022 Van Cliburn International Competition"
.
The Dallas Morning News
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
"[Newsmaker] South Korean pianist Lim Yun-chan becomes the youngest winner of Van Cliburn Int'l Piano Competition"
.
The Korea Herald
. 2022-06-19
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
"Pianist, 18, from South Korea wins Van Cliburn competition"
.
Associated Press
. 2022-07-19
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
Zeeble, Bill (2022-06-21).
"A South Korean musician wins the prestigious Van Cliburn piano"
.
National Public Radio
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
"Yunchan Lim, 임윤찬, 2022 Cliburn Gold Medalist"
.
The Cliburn
. Retrieved
2023-06-25
.
- ^
a
b
c
MacMillan, Kyle (July 29, 2023).
"Yunchan Lim turns his soft-spoken style into a sense of instant reverie | Chicago Symphony Orchestra"
.
Experience the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
. Retrieved
2023-08-11
.
- ^
Dong, Sun-hwa (2022-06-21).
"Yunchan Lim becomes youngest pianist in Cliburn history to win gold"
.
Korea Times
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
Oron, Aryeh (2022-12-28).
"Minsoo Sohn (Piano)"
.
Bach Cantatas Website
. Retrieved
2022-12-28
.
- ^
Hernandez, Javier C. (2023-05-09).
"Yunchan Lim Electrifies Audiences. But He's Unimpressed"
.
New York Times
. Retrieved
2023-06-04
.
- ^
"CIPC Announces 2018 Prizes in Young Artists Competition"
.
Cleveland Classical
. 2018-06-11
. Retrieved
2023-08-03
.
- ^
Burnett, Erich (2018-07-18).
"Three Pianists Advance to the Cooper Competition's Final Round"
.
Oberlin College
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
"18-year-old Yunchan Lim becomes youngest pianist to win 16th Van Cliburn competition"
.
Business Today
. 2022-07-20
. Retrieved
2022-06-25
.
- ^
"Yunchan Lim: biography"
.
Medici.tv
.
- ^
"Yunchan Lim - Forbes"
.
Forbes
. Retrieved
August 3,
2023
.
- ^
"10 First-Timers on Billboard's Charts This Week: Olivia Dean, Miles Miller, FendiDa Rappa & More"
.
Billboard
. 2023-07-19
. Retrieved
2023-08-11
.
- ^
Owen, Garrett (2023-08-10).
"CRESCENDO?2022 CLIBURN COMPETITION DOCUMENTARY? WORLD PREMIERE AUGUST 12 IN SOUTH KOREA"
.
The Cliburn
. Retrieved
2023-08-11
.
- ^
Savage, Mark (19 October 2023).
"Yunchan Lim: 19-year-old piano sensation signs record deal"
.
BBC News
.
- ^
"Chopin: Etudes, Opp. 10 & 25"
.
Circle Chart
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
April 25,
2024
.
- ^
Cumulative Sales of
Chopin: Etudes, Opp. 10 & 25
:
- "Circle Album Chart ? Week 16, 2024"
.
Circle Chart
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
April 25,
2024
.
- "Circle Album Chart ? Week 17, 2024"
.
Circle Chart
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
May 2,
2024
.
- "Circle Album Chart ? Week 18, 2024"
.
Circle Chart
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
May 9,
2024
.
- "Circle Album Chart ? Week 20, 2024"
.
Circle Chart
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
May 23,
2024
.
- "Circle Album Chart ? Week 23, 2024"
.
Circle Chart
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
June 13,
2024
.
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