4th Steinway Youth Piano Competition 2018 Grand Finals welcomes Nine Aspiring Pianists on Stage

SINGAPORE, 2018, 26 April – The Grand Finals of the 4th Steinway Youth Piano Competition 2018 will take place on 5th May at the School of the Arts Concert (SOTA) Concert Hall. 

The Grand Finals will see nine young aspiring pianists from between the ages of nine and 16 to vie for a chance to represent Singapore at the regional finals of the competition in Taiwan. 

Says Ms Celine Goh, General Manager of Steinway Gallery Singapore: “On 4 May, we will discover a national representative to the Steinway Youth Piano Competition Regional Finals and I am very pleased and heartened by the overwhelming responses, dedication and efforts put in by the students, parents and teachers to participate in the competition.” 

We all know that music education has always played a crucial role in character moulding and the journey of self-discovery. It is, therefore an excellent learning curve for students in their early formation years to have the courage and enthusiasm in taking part in a music competition such as the Steinway Youth Piano Competition which perceived to be a prestigious experience. “ 

The competition saw a total of 45 entrants of which the nine emerged as finalists: Joshuanne Yeh Su En, 9 ; Lim Hao Yu Olivier, 10; Meng Yi Rui Xue Jessie, 11; Xu Ruojin, 12; Yu Jingwen, 12; Tang Zhi Feng Adrian, 13; Daniel Loo Kang Le, 15; Lim Shi Han,15; and Zhang Yifan Jem, 16. 

Says Professor Gabriel Kwok of Hong Kong’s Academy of Performing Arts who was an adjudicator at the semi-final round: “I am very impressed with the standard of the performances and they are comparable with their peers in Asia.” The other two adjudicators of the semi-finals, Mr Loo Bang Hean from Malaysia and Professor Mary Anne Espina from the Philippines held the same opinion. The semi-finals took place earlier in April this year. 

The Grand Finals will be judged by renowned pianists and pedagogues Murray McLachlan from the United Kingdom, Noriko Ogawa from Japan and Tang Zhe from China. Both Ogawa and Tang are Steinway Artists. 

Success at the regional finals in Taiwan would subsequently see the winner representing Southeast Asia at the International Steinway Festival 2018 in Hamburg, Germany. 

Adds Ms Goh: “As we are committed to provide a holistic environment in nurturing young talents like yourselves, it is also a natural extension of our business to create this opportunity for young budding musicians to showcase their talents on a platform that is modelled after 

the Hamburg Festival which is a non-competitive musical get-together aimed to help foster friendships in celebrating the joy of music-making.”