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2025 Cliburn Gold Medalist Aristo Sham

In June 2022, Yunchan Lim 임윤찬 became the youngest person ever to win gold at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition; his performances throughout showcased a “magical ability” and a “natural, instinctive quality” (La Scena) that astounded listeners around the world. As Jury Chair Marin Alsop expressed: “Yunchan is that rare artist who brings profound musicality and prodigious technique organically together.” The depth of his artistry and connection to listeners also secured him the Audience Award and Best Performance of a New Work.

Your guide to Fort Worth during the 2025 Cliburn Competition

Dmytro Choni took home bronze at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in June 2022, only the second Ukrainian pianist to medal at the prestigious contest. He won hearts and accolades with a compelling and colorful musicality that is fortified by a genuine, immediately engaging stage presence. As one critic noted: “Each time he strode onstage, it was with winning confidence and a big smile. He’s clearly an accomplished, assured―and communicative—pro” (Dallas Morning News).

Info for Media

The Cliburn International Competition for Young Pianists was established in 2015 as another means for the Cliburn to use its standing and expertise to encourage tomorrow’s great artists, to provide a valuable forum for them to express themselves, and to give them an entrance to the next step of their journeys. Key ingredients are top international jurors, the media and webcast, Final Round performances with orchestra, and the festival atmosphere, which included performance experience and artistic workshops.

2025 Cliburn Competitor Vitaly Starikov

The Seventeenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition—named “one of the most prestigious contests in classical music” by The New York Times—takes place May 21–June 7, 2025, in Fort Worth, Texas, USA.

The complete collection of Cliburn Competition documentary films, from the first release in 1977 to 2022's Crescendo.

2025 Cliburn Competitor Angel Stanislav Wang