How to watch the young Canadian in the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition final
A Canadian has reached the final of the 2025 International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, widely regarded as the most prestigious piano competition in the world.
Calgary’s Kevin Chen, 20, is one of 11 finalists announced on Oct. 16 who’ll each play a piano concerto by Chopin with the Warsaw Philharmonic to vie for the coveted gold medal and a cash prize of $97,537.
The competition’s final stage will take place over three evenings — Oct. 18, 19 and 20 — concluding with the announcement of the prize winners.
All performances are streamed live on the YouTube channel of the Chopin Institute.
Chen has chosen Chopin’s Piano Concerto in E Minor, Op. 11, for the final. His performance will take place on Oct. 20 at 6 p.m. local time (noon ET).
Andrey Boreyko, former principal guest conductor of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and former music director of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, will conduct the Warsaw Philharmonic for the performances of all 11 finalists.
To reach the final, competitors advanced through a preliminary round held in April and May (171 pianists took part), to then perform three successive solo recitals in October: Stage 1 (84 pianists), Stage 2 (40 pianists) and Stage 3 (20 pianists).
WATCH | Kevin Chen performs during Stage 2 of the 2025 International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition:
Chen has had recent success at other international piano competitions. He won first prize ($51,000) at the 2023 Artur Rubinstein Competition in Tel Aviv and first prize ($27,000) at the 2022 Geneva International Music Competition.
Toronto’s Eric Guo, 23, who reached Stage 3, did not advance to the final.
WATCH | Eric Guo performs during Stage 3 of the 2025 International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition:
Canadian pianists have been dominant at the past two editions of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition: Bruce Liu won the gold medal in 2021 (held one year later than planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic), and Charles Richard-Hamelin won the silver medal in 2015. Vietnamese Canadian pianist Dang Thai Son won the gold medal in 1980.
The finalists at the 2025 International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition were selected by a jury comprising Garrick Ohlsson (jury chair), John Allison, Yulianna Avdeeva, Michel Béroff, Chen Sa, Dang Thai Son, Akiko Ebi, Nelson Goerner, Krzysztof Jabłoński, Momo Kodama, Kevin Kenner, Robert McDonald, Piotr Paleczny, Ewa Pobłocka, Katarzyna Popowa-Zydroń, John Rink and Wojciech Świtała.
The International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition takes place every five years. Its first prize laureate is catapulted into the international spotlight with a busy schedule of concert engagements around the world and high-profile recording projects.
Past laureates include Maurizio Pollini (1960), Martha Argerich (1965), Garrick Ohlsson (1970), Krystian Zimerman (1975), Đặng Thái Sơn (1980), Yundi Li (2000) and Seong-Jin Cho (2015).
