14-year-old pianist Adrian Tang Zhi Feng was crowned the Grand Prize winner and top performer of the Senior Category at the Young Talents Project 2019 (YTP) Grand Finals held on Sunday in Singapore.
Organised by Singapore's only classical music station Symphony 924, YTP is Mediacorp's annual celebration of classical music and talents. In its eighth edition this year, YTP saw close to a hundred young musicians entering the competition in two age categories – Junior Category for children between seven and 12 years old, and Senior Category for those aged between 13 and 17. Ten finalists were eventually shortlisted to perform a classical piece of their choice at the Grand Finals.
After impressing the judges with his rousing rendition of Variations Brillantes (Variations on a theme from Ferdinand Herold's Ludovic, in B-flat major) by Frederic Chopin, Adrian clinched the Grand Prize which included a trip to London with a visit to the Royal School of Music, the coveted chance to attend a masterclass at the Aureus Academy, as well as a prize of $2,000 for being the Senior Category winner. He took part in YTP 2016 and was one of the top five finalists in the Junior Category that year.
Grand Prize winner Adrian Tang said: “Besides working on the technical aspects of the piece, my teacher and I also worked on the emotional aspects as I tried to infuse as much emotion and meaning into every note so that it tells a story to the audience. Chopin is my favourite composer and I hope my performance is able to bring out his characteristics, elegance and virtuosity that he put into composing this piece.”
11-year-old cellist Michelle Zhu Manzhen was named the Junior Category winner for her enthralling performance of Rococo Variations Op. 33 by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, while 10-year-old pianist Toby Tan Kai Rong was awarded Best Stage Presence. The winners will be invited to perform on a national stage on two momentous events – the Gardens by the Bay & Mediacorp National Day Concert in August and the President's Star Charity 2019 this November.
Representing the panel of judges for this year's YTP, Ryan Lewis, South & East Asia Regional Consultant for ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music), said: “The art of performance is all about communication and all the performers today had something to say to the audience. We can sense the enjoyment and love of music in all the performers. Adrian in particular, chose a piece that showed off his strength as a performer and he really engaged and sustained the judges' interest.”
Sapna Angural, Head, English Audience, Mediacorp said: “Every one of our young musicians gave an amazing performance this evening. As Singapore's largest transmedia network, we are thrilled to play an enabling role for classical music and its talents to shine through our annual YTP, and look forward to providing them with an expanded stage across Mediacorp's multiple platforms.”