'Miracle Pianist' Tsuji Nobuyuki's First Solo Concert in Korea

Despite Congenital Visual Impairment, 2009 Van Cliburn Winner
Performing Chopin, Bach, Debussy, Rachmaninoff at Seoul Arts Center on the 3rd

The 2009 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition was a miraculous stage. This was because Nobuyuki Tsuji, a Japanese pianist who won the joint first prize, was congenitally visually impaired.

The "miracle pianist" Nobuyuki Tsuji will hold his first solo concert in Korea at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall on the 3rd of next month. It has been 13 years since he last performed on a domestic stage, which was a duo performance with pianist Yeol-eum Son in 2011.

Nobuyuki Tsuji [Photo provided by Mast Media, (c) Giorgia Bertazzi]

At his first solo recital, he will perform pieces by his most beloved composer Chopin, as well as works by Bach, Debussy, and Rachmaninoff.

The first piece will be Bach's French Suites, which showcase advanced technique and artistry. He will then perform Chopin's Impromptus and Fantaisie-Impromptu, composers who have had the greatest influence on Nobuyuki Tsuji. In the second half, he will perform Debussy's "Estampes" and Rachmaninoff's "Moments Musicaux."

Nobuyuki Tsuji was born in 1988 to a doctor father and a mother who was a former announcer. He was born with congenital microphthalmia, causing visual impairment. At the age of two, he began playing a toy piano after hearing his mother sing, and from the age of four, he started formal piano lessons, developing his musical talent.

In 2005, he made his mark by receiving the Critics' Award as the youngest participant at the Chopin Competition, the most prestigious piano competition in the world. Then, in 2009, he showed a miracle by winning the joint first prize at the Van Cliburn International Competition. In the final round, he performed Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 with dozens of orchestra members while listening to the conductor's breathing. The Van Cliburn Competition described him as "truly miraculous" and said, "His performance has a sacred power that heals the heart," expressing the emotional moment.

Nobuyuki Tsuji says that because there are limitations to mastering a large repertoire with braille scores, he listens to recordings where the right and left hands are recorded separately and memorizes the entire piece to perform.

He is also actively working as a composer. Showing talent in composition by performing his original piece "Street Corner of Vienna" at the age of 12, he later composed theme songs for various Japanese films and dramas. In 2011, he performed "Requiem for the Victims of the Tsunami" as an encore at his concert. His tearful piano performance at that time became a major topic on social media, evoking mourning and empathy worldwide. In 2012, he received the "Japanese Film Critics Award · Film Music Artist Award."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.