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2025 Competitors

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.

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

The Cliburn International Competition for Conductors in June 2028 will be the first major international conducting competition in North America. The new event represents another major expansion for the Cliburn’s almost 65-year-old history: the creation of a new top-level contest as well as the production of its first large-scale project in Houston, Texas.

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).

American pianist Clayton Stephenson’s love for music is immediately apparent in his joyous charisma onstage, expressive power, and natural ease at the instrument. Hailed for “extraordinary narrative and poetic gifts” and interpretations that are “fresh, incisive and characterfully alive” (Gramophone), he is committed to making an impact on the world through his music-making.

2025 Cliburn Competitor Vitaly Starikov

Read the latest in competition announcements, career updates from medalists, profiles on the Cliburn community, and local concerts.

Today, the Cliburn launches a new boutique management firm: the Cliburn Agency. The full-service firm offers comprehensive general management, concert booking, project management, and publicity and branding services to a select group of rising and established instrumentalists—piano and beyond—whose high artistic caliber is matched by a vision for moving the field of classical music forward.

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