A total of 37 South Korean nationals have won prizes at 25 international classical music competitions held in the first half of this year, a local cultural foundation said Friday.

Twelve Korean pianists were awarded at 13 contests, and seven violinists won medals at nine competitions during the January-June period, according to Kumho Cultural Foundation.

In competitions for viola and cello, four and six Koreans, respectively, reached a podium, while four wind instrument players and four artists from classic guitar, voice and others were also among the Korean laureates, it added.

In the piano category, Lim Yunchan won the gold medal at the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition last month, becoming the youngest winner at the prestigious U.S. contest.

At the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Conservatory Competition held in January, three Korean pianists swept the podium, including Kim Jeong-hwan, who took the No. 1 prize.

Violinist Yang In-mo became the first South Korean winning the International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition held in May. Wee Jae-won received the first prize in the violin section at the Washington International Competition for Strings last month.

For cello, Choi Ha-young won the Queen Elisabeth Competition, one of the three most coveted classical music contests in the world, last month. At the Irving M. Klein International String Competition in June, Kim Gaeun was named winner of the competition's 37th edition.

Violist Park Hayang took home the first prize at the Tokyo International Viola Competition held last month, while Yun So-hui won the viola category at the Washington International Competition for Strings. (Yonhap)