Two Taiwanese students win piano prizes in Italy

A pair of Taiwanese student pianists have walked away with honors at the Mauro Paolo Monopoli International Piano Competition, which was held in Italy last week.

Judges gave the top prize to Chen Chieh-han (陳介涵), a student at the Affiliated Senior High School of National Taiwan Normal University, who bested 34 other competitors representing 13 nations.

Chen was awarded US$3,000 and an opportunity to perform at 10 international concerts.

Hu Chih-lung (胡志龍), who completed his military service earlier this year and holds a master's in music from Taipei National University of The Arts, came in second.

A Russian judge praised Hu's performance, saying he has the potential to become an internationally renowned musician.

The judge said Hu should pursue advanced studies abroad, for example in Germany, to further sharpen his skills.

Chen and Hu weren't the only ones from Taiwan to do well at the competition.

Lin Hsiao-hsuan (林孝軒) finished fourth place, while Yen Chu-chun (顏竹君) and Yang Chien-ying(楊千瑩) shared fifth place.