Seoul Competition ends on a high note

The 2025 Seoul International Music Competition’s violin edition, marking the event’s 20th edition, confirmed its status as one of Asia’s most significant platforms for emerging talent. Held from November 30 to December 10, 2025 at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall, the competition brought together promising violinists aged 16 to 31, culminating in a highly competitive final round. Under the guidance of a distinguished jury chaired by Mi-kyung Lee and including Ju-Young Baek, Martin Beaver, Ronald Copes, Wei He, Masafumi Hori, Dong Suk Kang, Dene Olding, Marco Rizzi, and Ulf Wallin, the artistic level remained consistently high.

Violinist Hyunjae Lim emerged as a compelling and charismatic winner, taking first prize and USD 50,000 with a commanding performance of the Sibelius Violin Concerto. Her playing combined technical assurance with a mature, deeply expressive sound that seemed to resonate strongly with both jury and audience. Second and Third Prizes went to Lilia Pocitari and Yesong Sophie Lee, who received USD 30,000 and USD 20,000 respectively, while violinists Oleksii Tyshchenko, Jason Moon, and Haewon Yoon completed the prize list.