Pianist Lee Hyuk Shares 1st Place at France Long-Thibaud Competition

41 Countries, 112 Participants, Joint Victory in Final 6
First Korean Pianist in 21 Years Since Lim Donghyuk

Pianist Lee Hyuk (22) won joint first place at the Long-Thibaud International Competition. Photo by Kumho Cultural Foundation

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] Pianist Lee Hyuk (22) won joint first place at the Long-Thibaud International Competition.

On the 13th (local time), Lee Hyuk shared the honor of winning first place in the piano category final of the Long-Thibaud International Competition held at the Th??tre des Champs-?lys?es in Paris, France, with Japanese pianist Masaya Kamei (20).

The Long-Thibaud Competition was established in 1943. The record of a Korean pianist winning first place was achieved 21 years ago by Lim Donghyuk (38) in 2001. Previously, in 2012, Ahn Jongdo (36) placed second without a first prize. In the violin category, Shin Jia won first place in 2008, and in the vocal category, bass singer Shim Gihwan won first place in 2011.

Lee Hyuk will receive a prize money of 27,500 euros (approximately 37.55 million KRW) for winning the competition. Winners are invited to over 20 world-renowned music festivals, including the winner’s concert, the Gstaad New Year Festival, the Lyon Chopin Association Festival, and the Chopin Foundation Festival.

He competed against 32 finalists from 112 participants representing 41 countries worldwide in this competition, advancing through the first round and semifinals to achieve joint first place among the final six contestants.

Last October, Lee Hyuk was the only Korean to reach the finals of the world’s most prestigious Chopin International Competition. Although he did not place, he won the French Animato Competition, which exclusively features Chopin’s works, in December of the same year.

Born in Seoul in 2000, Lee Hyuk began learning piano and violin at the age of three. He continued his interest in music through homeschooling and received formal music education at the preparatory course of Sunhwa Arts School, studying under Lee Yangsook and Shin Sujeong.

Lee Hyuk won the Little Mozart Competition in 2009, the Moscow International Youth Chopin Competition in 2012 along with the Best Concerto Award, and in 2016, he became the youngest winner of the Paderewski Competition in Poland. In 2018, he placed third at the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition, known as the "gateway for star pianists."

After attending the Moscow Central Music School in 2014, Lee Hyuk entered the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory in 2016, studying under Professor Vladimir Opchinikov. He is currently pursuing the highest performance course under Professor Marian Ribicky at the Paris ?cole Normale de Musique.

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