MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Top pianists from around the world descended on Dallas, Texas, last week.
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KELLY: They've been competing in the Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition, with more than 20 teenagers performing classical sonatas and concertos from top composers.
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KELLY: We spoke with the final three participants of the Junior Cliburn competition as they were headed into the final round.
JAN SCHULMEISTER: So my name is Jan Schulmeister. I'm 16 years old, and I'm from Czech Republic.
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JAN: It was great enjoyment to make people happy for music and to connect to the audience. And Rachmaninoff, I think he meant this piece as song without word.
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JAN: I am so extremely happy and honored that I got the opportunity to play in such a wonderful hall for 2,000 people and extremely honored that I'm in the finals.
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YIFAN WU: Yes. My name is Yifan Wu. I come from Shanghai, China, and I'm 14 years old.
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YIFAN: I have prepared for the competition for half a year, and I practice seven hours per day because, you know, the Cliburn competition is really high level. It's really exciting. The piano is the king of the instrument. I just really love piano (laughter).
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SEOKYOUNG HONG: Hello. I am Seokyoung Hong, and I'm from South Korea. I'm 15 years old.
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SEOKYOUNG: And I really like the sound of piano and the fact that I can create the sound I want. In this Cliburn competition, I think the level of competitors were really, really - and they all play really good. So I was kind of scared, but maybe I also got inspired by them. Normally, junior competition does not have this many rounds and this much repertoire requirement, and this was the competition that I had to play the most pieces.
KELLY: Each teen piano prodigy was accompanied by an orchestra in the final round to further test their abilities.
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KELLY: And this year's winner, who you just heard there, was 15-year-old Seokyoung Hong of South Korea. Congratulations to all the junior Cliburn competitors.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
