Kim Tae-yeon places second at Queen Elisabeth

Cellist Kim Tae-yeon, 20, won second prize at the Queen Elisabeth Competition, one of the world's most prestigious classical music contests, extending South Korea's impressive run on the international classical music stage. The result comes three years after baritone Kim Tae-han won the competition's vocal division, further highlighting the growing prominence of Korean musicians in the classical music world.

Kim was named runner-up at Sunday's awards ceremony at the Bozar Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels, finishing behind Italian cellist Ettore Pagano, 23. Her performance follows Choi Ha-young's victory in the cello division in 2022, making Kim the latest South Korean musician to reach the competition's top ranks.

In an interview with Belgian public broadcaster RTBF after the ceremony, Kim said she was delighted with the result.

"I'm so happy," she said. "I was very fortunate to perform last. I'm grateful for that opportunity. I think it helped me earn the standing ovation. It felt like I bowed to the audience 10 times."

Twelve musicians competed in the final round, which took place a day before the awards ceremony. Pagano won first prize, Kim finished second and Canadian cellist Leland Ko, who was born in the United States, placed third.

The youngest finalist in the competition, Kim performed "Four Odes to the Tidings of Flowers," a contemporary work by Chinese American composer Fang Man, along with Polish composer Witold Lutosławski's Cello Concerto.

Founded in 1937, the Queen Elisabeth Competition is held annually for musicians between the ages of 18 and 30. The event rotates among four disciplines: cello, violin, piano and voice. Together with Poland's Chopin International Piano Competition and Russia's International Tchaikovsky Competition, it is widely regarded as one of the world's leading classical music competitions.

South Korean musicians have enjoyed notable success at the competition over the years. Alongside Kim Tae-han and Choi Ha-young, soprano Hong Hye-ran won the vocal division in 2011 and soprano Hwang Sumi followed with a victory in 2014. Violinist Lim Ji-young captured the top prize in the violin category in 2015. In the composition division, which was discontinued after 2012, Cho Eun-hwa won in 2008 and Jeon Min-jae claimed the title a year later.


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