About this Artist
With an innate musicality and consummate artistry, Seong-Jin Cho has established himself worldwide as one of the leading pianists of his generation and most distinctive artists on the current music scene. His thoughtful and poetic, virtuosic, and colorful playing can combine panache with purity and is driven by an impressive natural sense of balance. He is celebrated across the globe for his expressive magic and illuminative insights.
Seong-Jin Cho was brought to the world’s attention in 2015 when he won First Prize at the Chopin International Competition in Warsaw, and his career has rapidly ascended since. In early 2016, he signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon. In 2023, Cho was awarded the prestigious Samsung Ho-Am Prize in the Arts in recognition of his exceptional contributions to classical music. An artist much in demand, Cho works with the world’s most prestigious orchestras, including Berliner Philharmoniker, Wiener Philharmoniker, London Symphony Orchestra, Concertgebouworkest, and Boston Symphony Orchestra. Conductors with whom he regularly collaborates include Myung-Whun Chung, Gustavo Dudamel, Andris Nelsons, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Gianandrea Noseda, Sir Antonio Pappano, Sir Simon Rattle, Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Lahav Shani.
In the 2024/25 season Cho takes up the mantle of Artist in Residence with the Berliner Philharmoniker, a position that sees him work with the orchestra on multiple projects across the season including concerto performances, chamber music collaborations, on tour to the Osterfestspiele Baden-Baden, and in recital. Elsewhere, he notably returns to London’s BBC Proms, to The Philadelphia Orchestra to open its season with Yannick Nézet-Séguin, to the New York Philharmonic and Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Santtu-Matias Rouvali, and to The Cleveland Orchestra under Franz Welser-Möst. Cho embarks on several international tours, including his return to Wiener Philharmoniker with Andris Nelsons in Korea and to Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks with Sir Simon Rattle in Korea, Japan, and Taiwan, following a performance of Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto in Munich.
Highly sought after in recital, Seong-Jin Cho appears in the world’s most prestigious concert halls, including the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Musikverein Wien, Alte Oper Frankfurt, KKL Luzern, Sala Santa Cecilia, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Rudolfinum, Suntory Hall Tokyo, Festival International de Piano de La Roque d’Anthéron, and Verbier Festival. This season he presents the complete solo piano music of Maurice Ravel at venues including the Wiener Konzerthaus, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Barbican Centre London, Boston’s Symphony Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and Carnegie Hall.
Cho’s latest recording is his solo album The Handel Project, released in early 2023. In 2021, he released Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Scherzi with the London Symphony Orchestra and Gianandrea Noseda for Deutsche Grammophon. He had previously recorded his first album with the same orchestra and conductor featuring Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1 as well as the Four Ballades. His solo album The Wanderer was released in 2020 and features Schubert’s “Wanderer” Fantasy, Berg’s Piano Sonata Op. 1, and Liszt’s Piano Sonata in B minor. A solo Debussy recital was also released in 2017, followed by a Mozart album with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Yannick Nézet-Séguin in 2018. All albums have been released on the Yellow Label and have garnered critical acclaim worldwide.
Born in 1994 in Seoul, Seong-Jin Cho started learning the piano at the age of 6 and gave his first public recital at the age of 11. In 2009, he became the youngest-ever winner of Japan’s Hamamatsu International Piano Competition. In 2011, he won Third Prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow at the age of 17. From 2012 to 2015, he studied with Michel Béroff at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. Cho is now based in Berlin.