Congratulations to Toronto's Jun Li Bui who won the €2,000 third prize (category A) at the Aarhus International Piano Competition for young pianists, held March 10 to 18 in Aarhus, Denmark. Bui also won the special €1,000 Carl Nielsen Prize in category A.
Bui is 12 years old, was the grand prize winner of CBC Music's 2016 Piano Hero contest, and was named one of CBC Music's 30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30 for 2016.
The entire Aarhus International Piano Competition was webcast and archived, so you can watch Bui's complete performances (rounds 1 and 2) below.
Originally known as the Bang & Olufsen pianoRAMA-Competition, the Aarhus International Piano Competition has been held annually in its new format since 2013. Contestants enter in one of two categories: the senior category (B) is for pianists 17 to 22 years old; the junior category (A) is for pianists 11 to 16. For a complete list of prizewinners, head over here.
The Aarhus Competition's 2017 jury comprised chair Søren Rastogi (Denmark), Akiko Ebi (Japan), Christopher Elton (U.K.), Erik T. Tawaststjerna (Finland), Ewa Poblocka (Poland), Jean-Paul Sevilla (Canada) and Uta Weyand (Germany).
Round 1 program:
- Nielsen: Humoreske Bagateller, Op. 11
- Schubert: Sonata in A Major, Op. 120, D. 664, first movement
- Liszt: "La Campanella"
- Chopin: Ballade No. 1 in G Minor
Round 2 program:
- Beethoven: Sonata in G Major, Op. 31, No. 1, first movement
- Chopin: Andante Spianato and Grand Polonaise Brillante, Op. 22
- Debussy: "L'Isle joyeuse"
Explore more:
Watch 11-year-old Jun Li Bui play Chopin and be amazed
Watch a fascinating piano lesson on Haydn and Liszt with David Jalbert