A very special night in Seoul

It was a stunning moment at the award ceremony of this year´s Seoul intl. Music Competition. The 6^th to 3^rd prizes had been announced, bouquets had been received, and the tension in the audience kept rising: who would win the first prize? Then, the moderator called both remaining finalists on stage and announced the stunning result: this year´s Seoul International Music Competition has two First Prize winners!

The audience erupted in applause and celebrated Sungho Yoo (28, of the Hannover University) and Youl Sun (24, of Ecole Normale in Paris). Jury Chairman Heesung Joo said: “Although the two artists had very distinct colors, they were equal in their way of expressing their musical ideas and abilities in a fascinating way”.

In the finals with the Hankyung Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Kwang-Hyun Kim, both laureates performed Prokofiev: Sungho Yoo chose Piano Concerto No. 2, Youl Sun took on Piano Concerto No. 3. Both will receive a cash award of USD 40.000, which is half of the combined Second and First prizes.

It was the second time for Sungho Yoo to take part in this competition: in 2021 he had already won Fifth Prize. Yoo studied piano with his mother and went abroad to join the piano class of Dang Thai Son at the New England Conservatory. Currently he is a post-graduate student of Arie Vardi in Hannover, Germany. 

Youl Sun had already won another First Prize in 2024: he received the Gold Medal at the Gina Bachauer Competition in Salt Lake City. Sun graduated from Schola Cantorum in Paris and is now studying with Olivier Gardon at École Normale.