Bold Teenage Classical Prodigies Dreaming of Communicating with the World Through Music

Interview with Grand Prize Winners of the Asia Tchaikovsky Competition
Violinist Choi Sujin "I Can Convey Emotions Through Music"
Pianist Jeong Seungho "Great Joy in Personal Interpretation"
Cellist Lee Ji-eon "Thrill of Standing Alone on Stage"

We met the proud faces who won the grand prize at the ‘2024 Asia Tchaikovsky Young Artists Competition’ on the 24th at the Seoul National University of Education Music Hall. On this day, a commemorative concert was held at the music hall featuring the classical prodigies who won awards in the competition held from the 9th to the 17th. Among the over 200 participants, including adults in their 20s, the grand prize winners were young prodigies in their early teens. Sujin Choi (12, violin), Seungho Jung (14, piano), and Jieun Lee (15, cello) showed a confident demeanor comparable to adults when expressing their thoughts and convictions about their performances, despite being shy during the unfamiliar interview. The youngest among them, Sujin, showed a mature side, saying she wants to convey the emotions contained in music well. Seungho stood out with his passion, having withdrawn from school earlier this year to increase his personal practice time and currently dedicating 10 hours a day to piano practice through homeschooling. Jieun impressed with her ambition to become a cellist like Yunchan Lim (pianist) and perform on the world stage.

"I want to be a musician who conveys the emotions embedded in music well." (Sujin Choi, 12, violin category grand prize winner)

"Even if the audience doesn’t know the pieces I play, I want to be a captivating pianist who can draw them in." (Seungho Jung, 14, piano category grand prize winner)

"I want to perform a lot on the world stage and become a cellist like Yunchan Lim (pianist) whose name everyone knows." (Jieun Lee, 15, cello category winner)

The grand prize winners of the ‘2024 Asia Tchaikovsky Young Artists Competition,’ Sujin Choi, Seungho Jung, and Jieun Lee, showed a confident attitude that matched their outstanding performance skills, surpassing their older peers in their 20s.

The youngest grand prize winner, Sujin Choi, is currently a 6th grader at Eonbuk Elementary School. She started playing the violin as a hobby at age 7 and began focusing seriously on the piano from late 4th grade. She currently practices intensely for 5 hours a day. Last year, as she increased her practice time, she was so dedicated that when her fingers bled, she applied Vaseline every night before bed.

Sujin said, "I enjoy being able to convey emotions while playing music."

Her favorite pieces are by Brahms and Saint-Sa?ns. In the finals of this competition, she performed ‘Caprice on a Waltz Form,’ arranged by Eug?ne Ysa?e from the 6th of Saint-Sa?ns’ six ?tudes, earning her the honor.

She plans to perform Brahms’ pieces in August this year on the Kumho Young Artist Concert stage, where she will present Brahms’ violin sonata.

Sujin said, "I haven’t read books about Brahms yet, but I understand the flow of Brahms’ music. Since the performance is mostly on the G and D strings, the music needs to be a bit more steadfast, which is somewhat challenging."

Seungho Jung, who won the grand prize in the piano category, withdrew from Yewon School after completing the first grade earlier this year to increase his personal practice time.

"When I got home from school around 6 p.m., I always felt my personal practice time was insufficient. At most, it was about 4 to 5 hours."

Now, homeschooling, he practices piano from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.

"I started piano a bit later than my peers, so my repertoire is limited. To fill that, I need a lot of practice time. Excluding meal times, I practice about 10 hours a day now."

The faces of glory who won the grand prize at the '2024 Asia Tchaikovsky Young Artists Competition.' From the left, Seungho Jeong (piano), Jieun Lee (cello), Sujin Choi (violin).
[Photo by Tchaikovsky C&C Co., Ltd.]

He began seriously playing the piano because he enjoyed ‘interpreting’ the music in his own way.

"I think my music is about comparing various performances with what I originally thought and gradually refining them to create a better interpretation. I find that part fun, so I started learning piano seriously. Because I respect interpretation, I don’t particularly favor any specific composer’s pieces."

Seungho won consecutive first prizes in competitions such as the Ewha Kyunghyang Competition and the Korea Chopin Competition in 6th grade. This was his first competition since entering middle school. "Since I hadn’t participated in competitions for a while, I started doubting if this was right. Now that I got good results, I have to work even harder."

He is also preparing for the Kumho Young Artist Concert in November this year. He plans to perform the only piano sonata left by Liszt.

Jieun Lee, the cello category winner, is currently a 3rd grader at Yewon School. She first saw the cello at a friend of her mother’s house at age 5 and was captivated. She began serious cello playing after winning a prize in a competition at age 8. She consecutively won first prizes in the Yukyoung Competition in 2016 and the Sungjung Competition in 2017.

"I also learned piano, but I was more drawn to the cello because it’s prettier and sounds better. I like the violin’s sound too, but I think I’m more attracted to the cello’s mid-to-low tones."

After entering Yewon School, Jieun often participated in chamber music competitions with school friends who played piano and violin.

"Standing alone on a big stage gives me a thrill. When doing chamber music, it’s much more fun to practice because I have friends to rely on and talk to."

Jieun’s favorite pieces include Bach’s cello suites and the cello concertos by Elgar and Dvo??k. She explained, "These pieces best showcase the cello’s magnificent charm."

Jieun performed on the Kumho Young Artist Concert stage in June 2020 when she was in 5th grade. She plans to challenge the Kumho Young Artist qualification, which is granted from age 15, next year.

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