sixteen-year-old pianist wins in the 4th philippine steinwayYouth piano Competition
SCompetition. ixteen-year-old Gregory Cheong was hailed as the grand prize winner of the 4th Philippine Steinway Youth Piano
He topped 15 other finalists aged eight to 17 years old in the competition held at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium in RCBC Plaza, Makati City. Gregory will represent the Philippines at the Steinway Regional Finals in Taiwan this coming August.
Cheong, who performed pieces by J. Haydn, C. Debussy, and F. Chopin, also took home the top prize for Category 3 (ages 15 to 17). The winners for Category 1, ages 11 and below, are: Selina Go (1st place), Angelmay Tsai (1st runner-up), and William Matthew Lim (2nd runner-up); for Category 2, ages 12 to 14: Athena Justina Elizaga (1st place), Nathan Go (1st runner-up), Catherine Li (2nd runner-up), and Sophia Domique Sumolong (imagin.Asia representative); and for Category 3, ages 15 to 17: Irene Jasmine Lee (1st runner-up) and Andrea Bernadette Verzosa (2nd runner-up).
The grand finals was adjudicated by SteinwayArtists Professor Benjamin Loh (Singapore) and Professor Eleanor Wong (Hong Kong), as well as Professor Albert Tiu who is a renowned Filipino pianist based in Singapore.
Brand Manager of Steinway Boutique Manila, May Yao says, “It was a treat seeing how the participants interpreted such timeless, beautiful compositions. We are very excited to have Gregory represent Philippines at the regional finals in Taiwan in August. I would also like to congratulate the winners from each category who have dedicated their time and efforts to prepare for the grand finals.”
The Steinway Youth Piano Competition is an important biennial event organized by Steinway & Sons to identify, encourage, and promote young pianists in the formative stages of their careers. The winner will represent the Philippines in the regional round, joining seven other finalists from Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam and Thailand who will represent these Southeast Asian nations in the International Steinway Festival in Hamburg, Germany in September this year.
The chairperson of Steinway Youth Piano Competition, Celine Goh, says, “The Steinway Youth Piano Competition is a holistic approach to the art of piano playing and it is a platform for young budding musicians to get together, foster friendship and the joy of making music. There is of course a competition pressure but the real reward is to be part of it, and to be part of a big family of young people who love to play the piano.”