Montreal-based pianist Xiaoyu (Bruce) Liu has won first place in the 18th Frédéric Chopin International Piano Competition.
He is the first Canadian ever to win the prestigious competition.
Liu performed Chopin’s Concerto in E minor, Opus 11 for a full house with the National Philharmonic in Warsaw.
“Oh my god. I don’t know what to say, honestly,” Liu said after hearing the results. “We have been dreaming with all these people here for this prestigious stage here. Being able to play Chopin in Warsaw is one of the best things you can imagine, of course, so I’m truly honoured for this award, for this jury’s trust, and the public for all the warm regards I have received in recent days.”
Liu is the second alumni after Charles Richard-Hamelin from the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal to place at the competition.
The second placing Canadian to make it to the finals, JJ Jun Li Bui, placed a respectable 6th place.
Born in Paris in 1997, Liu grew up in Montreal, where he moved with his parents at the age of six. In 2012, aged only fifteen, he won the OSM Competition, and in 2015, he won the Prix d’Europe.
The winners of the 2021 Chopin Competition are:
- 1st prize – Bruce (Xiaoyu) Liu, Canada
- 2nd prize ex aequo – Alexander Gadjiev, Italy / Slovenia
- 2nd Prize ex aequo – Kyohei Sorita, Japan
- 3rd Prize – Martin Garcia Garcia, Spain
- 4th Prize ex aequo – Aimi Kobayashi, Japan
- 4th Prize ex aequo – Jakub Kuszlik, Poland
- 5th Prize – Leonora Armellini, Italy
- 6th Prize – JJ Jun Li Bui, Canada
Congratulations to all the winners! Listen to Liu’s final competition performance here:
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