Cellist Han Jaemin, School of Music, Earns 3 Crowns at the 2022 Isangyun Competition

Cellist Han Jaemin (16 years old, a sophomore in the Department of Instrumental Music) won in the 2022 Isangyun Competition. In addition to taking 1st place, Han Jaemin won the UNESCO Member of the Creative City Special Award by earning the most audience votes and Park Seong-yong Prodigy Special Award, the prize for a prospective Korean performer who advances to the final. 

The Isangyun Competition started in 2003 to commemorate composer Yun Isang (1917-1995) from Tongyeong city and to discover and nurture young talented musicians. It is the first Korean music competition to join the World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC). The piano, violin, and cello sections each annually take turns to be held. This year, it took place in the cello. The 146 competitors from 27 countries entered the competition. Han Jaemin placed first by playing Yun Isang’s cello concerto. Meanwhile, cellist Jeong Woo-chan, an alumnus of the School of Music, placed second, acquiring the Isang Yun Special Award. Han and Jeong studied with Prof. Chung Myung-hwa and Prof. Lee Kang-ho at the Korea National Institute for the Gifted in Arts (KNIGA) and the School of Music, respectively.

Han Jaemin, born in 2006, began playing cello at age five and revealed his genius at an early age by performing with the Wonju Philharmonic Orchestra at age 8. Han made himself known to the world by becoming the youngest-ever winner of the George Enescu International Competition in Romania last year. Furthermore, he placed third in the Geneva International Music Competition in Switzerland. Earlier in the Dotzauer Competition for Young Cellists 2019 in Dresden, Germany, Han came to the limelight as a promising young cellist by taking 1st place and the Modern Music Composition Award. Lately, he signed with KD Schmidt, the European classical music management corporation with 60 years of history located in Berlin, Hanover, and London, for general management. Many world-renowned performers, including pianist Cho Seong-jin, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and conductor Andris Nelsons, also work with the KD Schmidt.

ⓒ Isangyun Competition