18-Year-Old Pianist Jungwoo Lee Wins George Enescu Competition, Sweeps Five Special Prizes

Cellist Sanghyuk Park also wins third prize

The Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation announced on September 20 that Jungwoo Lee, an 18-year-old pianist and a foundation scholarship recipient, has won first prize in the piano division of the 2026 George Enescu International Competition.

On September 19 (local time), Jungwoo Lee clinched first place in the finals held at the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest, the capital of Romania. He performed Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 in collaboration with the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Daniela Candillari.

Jungwoo Lee also demonstrated his overwhelming talent by sweeping five special awards, including the "Radu Lupu Prize" for the best interpretation of an Enescu piece, the Special Prize for the Best Performance of a Commissioned Work, the Audience Prize, the "Play for Tomorrow" Special Prize, and the Cotto Special Prize named after the French pianist Alfred Cortot, who was a colleague and friend of Enescu.

Pianist Jeongwoo Lee. Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation

The George Enescu International Competition, launched in 1958 to honor Romanian composer and violinist George Enescu and to discover emerging musicians, is held biennially in four categories: composition, cello, violin, and piano. Together with the George Enescu Festival, it has become one of the world's premier music events.

Previously, on September 7, foundation scholarship recipient and cellist Sanghyuk Park, aged 22, won third place in the cello division, marking a joint achievement as two of the foundation’s culture and arts scholarship recipients received prizes at this year's competition. In the 2021 competition, the foundation’s recipients also excelled: cellist Jaemin Han became the youngest winner, while violinist Jaewon Wi took the runner-up position, with two students placing in the event.

Born in 2008, Jungwoo Lee set a record as the youngest prizewinner in the piano division at this year’s competition. He was selected as a Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation scholar in 2022 while attending Yewon School. Last year, he was chosen as an overseas scholarship recipient and entered the New England Conservatory (NEC) in Boston, USA, where he is currently studying under Professor Hyesun Paik. In Korea, he studied under Professor Sujung Shin and was recognized early on for his musical talent as a Kumho Young Artist. In 2024, he became the youngest winner in the senior division of the Ettlingen International Competition.

Jungwoo Lee stated, "Through this competition, I had various experiences and grew a lot, both musically and personally. I am grateful to the foundation, and I will continue to devote myself to music and keep studying hard."

Cellist Park Sanghyuk. Hyundai Motor Group Chung Mong-Koo Foundation

Sanghyuk Park has drawn attention by winning prizes in major international competitions, including third place at the Tchaikovsky Competition, second place at the Penderecki Competition, first prize at the David Popper Competition, and a special prize at the Prague Spring International Competition. He was selected as a Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation culture and arts scholar in 2021 while studying at Korea National University of Arts and is currently studying at the Reina Sofía School of Music in Madrid, Spain, as an overseas scholarship student.

Sanghyuk Park said, "I am grateful to my teachers, family, and everyone at the foundation who accompanied me on this long journey. I will strive to become a musician who delivers even better music."

Other culture and arts scholars from the Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation include pianist Yunchan Lim (youngest winner of the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition), ballerina Dayeon Yeom (runner-up at the 2026 Prix de Lausanne in Switzerland), double bassist Siheon Yoo (winner of the 2025 ISB International Competition and 2024 Bottesini International Competition), violinist Hyunseo Kim (youngest third prize winner at the 2025 Paganini International Competition and youngest runner-up at the 2024 Viotti International Music Competition), pianist Youngho Shin (runner-up at the 2025 Dublin International Competition), pianist Sunyul (first place at the 2024 Seoul International Music Competition and winner of the 2024 Gina Bachauer Competition), violist Kyungsik Shin (winner of the 2024 Max Rostal International Competition and runner-up at the Prague Spring International Competition), and cellist Jaemin Han (winner of the 2022 Isang Yun International Music Competition and youngest winner of the 2021 George Enescu International Competition).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.