“It is a great pleasure to present the award at Kumho Art Hall Yonsei,” Kumho Asiana Group Chairman Park Sam-koo said during the award ceremony held Friday. “I am very proud of Cho Seong-jin, who has become a world-acclaimed pianist in such a short period of time since he made his debut at the Kumho Prodigy Concert Series in 2005.”

As part of the award, Cho received a cash prize of 20 million won ($18,779), as well as other forms of support, including business class tickets on Asiana Airlines for the next two years.

The Kumho Musician Award is given annually to support talented young classical music artists aged 30 and under. Previous winners include pianists Son Yeol-eum and Kim Sun-wook; the late violinist Kwon Hyuk-joo; violinists Clara Ju-mi Kang, Lee Yu-ra and Lim Ji-young; and bassist Sung Min-jae.

By Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)