South Korean champion thrills Beijing audience

Cho Seong-jin won the 17th International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw in October.[Photo provided to China Daily]

It's a cold Saturday afternoon and the Beijing Concert Hall is packed. Cho Seong-jin has arrived for his Beijing debut and there are great expectations of the 21-year-old from South Korea who won the prestigious 17th International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in the Polish capital, Warsaw, on Oct 20 this year.

At the concert, he performed pieces that he played in each round of the competition. He played Liszt's La Campanella as an encore, and received an extended ovation.

"This is a great venue. I think I will be coming back here," says the shy pianist after the recital.

Cho also interacted with his Chinese fans by signing copies of his album, a live recording of his performances at the competition. It was released by renowned classical music label Deutsche Grammophon.

Now, the pianist is busy touring, and this includes a concert in Seoul on Feb 2. It has been a long time since Cho's last performance in his home country.

The pianist says that he had been dreaming about participating in the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition for a long time.

Held every five years, the competition has earned a reputation as one of the world's top piano events, paving international careers to many young pianists.

The winner is awarded concerts in some of the world's best-known halls, contracts for recordings and a 30,000-euro ($33,000) prize.

However, Cho didn't made the decision to take part in the competition until last November.

"I prepared for the competition for less than a year but I have been playing those pieces of Chopin since I was a child," he says.

"I didn't expect to win the competition. I just enjoyed playing Chopin's music onstage during the competition."

Born in Seoul and now based in Paris, where he studies with Michel Beroff at the Paris Conservatoire, Cho read a lot about Chopin's life, visited Chopin's grave and the places he lived.

"When I am playing, I don't think much about my own style. I try to understand the composer and get a feel of his music for myself as much as possible," he says.

For Cho, the competition was an overwhelming experience. But before this, he had won international piano competitions. In 2008, Cho won the first prize at the Moscow Chopin Competition for Young Pianists. The next year, he won the first prize at the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition. He took third place at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2011 and another third prize at the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition in 2014.

He first played the piano at 6. At that time, he played the piano with one finger.

"My parents are very open. They didn't force me to do anything. I also learned painting and took part in sports. But when I realized that classical music was my biggest interest, I decided to be a pianist," he says.

Since childhood, Cho has been playing pieces by Mozart, Beethoven as well as Schumann and Schubert. He was inspired by listening to the recordings of Radu Lupu and Krystian Zimerman. "Frankly, I don't like rock and pop music. I only listen to classical music," Cho says.

Now living in Paris, Cho likes going to museums and tasting local food in his spare time. He practices for around five hours a day.

One of the most common questions asked to Cho by his fans is what advice he would give to young pianists. "I would like to say that being a pianist requires lots of time and practice," he says.