Auckland teen wins gold at Sydney piano competition

By ALAN PERROTT

A teenage Auckland University music student is on the brink of lucrative stardom after winning the renowned Sydney International Piano Competition.

John Chen beat an array of international talent despite only being part-way through his music degree at the university's National Institute of Creative Arts and Industries' School of Music.

The 18-year-old honours student, who has been playing piano since the age of 3, was one of 36 contestants culled from more than 200 auditions around the world for what is considered one of the great piano competitions.

His title also carried almost $43,000 in prize money.

The final concert was held in the concert hall of the Sydney Opera House on Saturday afternoon and will be broadcast on Concert FM this week.

Chen's teacher for the past 11 years, Rae de Lisle, said he delivered the goods during each performance and his rendition of Rachmaninov's Third Concerto was "profoundly moving".

"He is a truly remarkable young man who draws the listener into the core of his music. The beauty of the sound that he drew from the Kawai grand piano was spellbinding."

Professor Sharman Pretty, dean of the music school, said Chen's achievement was comparable to winning Olympic gold.

"New Zealand and Australia usually launch someone on to the world stage about once a decade if we're lucky.

"This is an achievement we should all be incredibly proud of and John could have a fantastic life ahead if he can break into the A team of solo musicians.

"It's a ferociously competitive profession and winning a competition like this can be the launchpad for a solo career - it's just that the winners are normally about 10 years older than John."

Last year, he won the Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition in Brisbane, the Kapiti Coast Piano Competition, the Rotorua National Concerto Competition and the Recital Award.

Herald music critic William Dart described John Chen as a prodigiously talented young man whose early achievements would make many more mature performers envious.

"John has always taken chamber music extremely seriously and it's here that he really did excel: the audience gave him a standing ovation for his performance in the Ravel Piano Trio."

Dart said Chen owed much to Ms de Lisle. "It would be difficult to imagine a more devoted teacher."

Chen is the first winner from New Zealand or Australia since the Sydney competition began in 1977.

New Zealanders have come close before, with Patrick O'Byrne placing 8th in 1981, and Henry Wong Doe 6th in 2000.

The main prize winners will have a two-month concert tour throughout Australia, followed by performances at several international festivals.

Chen lost his voice after his win and was unable to speak to the Herald last night.

His mother, Janet, said he was left exhausted by the competition.

"It's been like a marathon for him over the last three weeks," she said after arriving back at their Balmoral home last night. "But we're still on cloud nine."