Lim Yun-chan becomes first Korean pianist to win prestigious Gramophone award

Pianist Lim Yun-chan plays the piano on stage after winning awards at the Gramophone Classical Music Awards in London on October 2. Courtesy of Gramophone

Pianist Lim Yun-chan (20) has won two awards at the prestigious Gramophone Classical Music Awards, an annual British awards ceremony in the classical world.

At the awards ceremony held in London on October 2 (local time), Lim won in the piano category for “Chopin: Etudes” and won the "Young Artist of the Year" award.

“The Recording of the Year,” which is in effect the grand prix of the awards, went to U.S. violinist Hilary Hahn's “YSAŸE Six Solo Violin Sonatas.”

The Gramophone Awards have been presented annually since 1977 by the British classical magazine Gramophone. It is the most prestigious award in the classical world. It picks the best recordings every year in the categories of chamber music, vocal music, concertos, contemporary music, instrumental music, opera, and orchestra.

Korean winners include violinist Jung Kyung-hwa (in 1990 for chamber music and in 1994 for concerto) and cellist Chang Han-na (in 2003 for concerto). Lim is the first Korean pianist to be honored.

This year's finalists in the piano category include Lim's “Chopin: Etudes” and “Liszt: Transcendental Etudes,” and Pyotr Anderszewski's “Complete Works of Bartók, Janáček, and Szymanowski.” Two of the three finalists were Lim's recordings, with “Etudes” winning by one vote over “Transcendental Etude.”

The "Young Artist of the Year’ award is a special prize given to an outstanding young musician. Lim received applause for his performance of Liszt's “Sonetto 104 del Petrarca” on stage.

Gramophone said, "There's the superhuman control of dynamics that can swirl this way or that, with never a break in the line,” adding, "In the short term, I doubt that any other recording of the Etudes will deliver more: a magnificent achievement." It also described Lim “enters into rivalry with” legendary pianists Maurizio Pollini, the young Vladimir Ashkenazy, and Murray Perahia.

In his acceptance speech, Lim said, “Everything I've seen with my eyes, everything I've heard, felt, experienced, and learned is in my music. The people who deserve this award are my family, my teachers, my agency, great artists, and my friends.”

Lim emerged as a global piano sensation after winning the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2022. “Liszt: Transcendental Etudes,” which was nominated for the piano category this time, is also an album that recorded the live performance at the time. Since then, Lim has become a classical star with a strong fandom not only at home but also abroad. This year’s national tour recital in Korea, where he played Mussorgsky's "Picture of the Exhibition,” was also a shocking performance that would be talked about for a long time.

Lim is currently performing in Europe and the U.S. after completing the national tour in June. The domestic concert was scheduled in December. From December 17 to 22, Lim will perform Chopin's “Piano Concerto No. 2" with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie conducted by Pavo Yerbi for five concerts.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.