2022 Van Cliburn Competition Bronze Medal Winner

Dmytro Choni took home bronze at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in June 2022, only the second Ukrainian pianist to medal at the prestigious Ft Worth-based contest. He won hearts and accolades with a compelling and colorful musicality that is fortified by a genuine, immediately engaging stage presence. As one critic noted: “Each time he strode onstage, it was with winning confidence and a big smile. He’s clearly an accomplished, assured, and communicative pro.” (Dallas Morning News).

Dmytro Choni began piano in his native Kyiv when he was 4 years old. After a particularly meaningful performance at the age of 14, which he calls “a turning point,” his lifelong journey of professional musicianship began. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine. In March of this year, he told the Fort Worth Report that music is “always kind of a hideaway from what’s going on in the world. Through the music, you can try to project the best possible emotion, the optimism, the hope.”

His Cliburn prize builds on an already impressive resume. He has garnered top prizes and awards at, among others, the Paloma O’Shea Santander International Piano Competition (Spain 2018), the Leeds International Piano Competition (Great Britain 2021), and the Bösendorfer USASU (USA 2019). He has collaborated with renowned orchestras, such as the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Fort Worth Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, RTVE Symphony, Seongnam Philharmonic, Ukraine National Symphony, Castilla y León Symphony, Liechtenstein Symphony, and Dominican Republic National Symphony Orchestras, working with conductors Andrew Manze, Marin Alsop, Nicholas McGegan, Oksana Lyniv, and others.