Ten uber-talented young pianists have been selected to advance to the Semifinal rounds of the 2025 Honens International Piano Competition. Among them are two Canadians — Carter Johnson, recently a finalist in the Van Cliburn competition, and Élisabeth Pion.
The ten semifinalists range in age from 24 to 30, and along with Canada, hail from eight different countries, including Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Russia, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
They’ll be competing in solo and chamber recitals at Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall, Rozsa Centre from October 16 to 20. From the ten, three finalists will be chosen to perform at the two finals rounds on October 23 and 24.
One will be chosen as the 2025 Honens Gold Laureate, and will receive $100,000 CAD, one of the largest prizes of its kind in the world. The winner also receives a comprehensive three-year artistic development and career accelerator program.
The First Jury was made up of Sara Davis Buechner, Nicolas Namoradze, Marianne Perron, and Robert Roux. They reviewed the Quarterfinal recitals, along with interviews recorded in Berlin and New York in March 2025.
“Congratulations to these pianists for making it to the Semifinals round,” says Honens Artistic Director Jon Kimura Parker in a statement.
“The Jury has narrowed down the participants from 51 Quarterfinalists to an exceptionally talented group of 10. It is always a difficult task for our Jurors, and the level of proficiency this year was truly remarkable. Our jurors brought extraordinary care and insight, as well as deep listening and dedication to the process. We are now a step closer to naming the 2025 Honens Gold Laureate, that one truly special pianist who embodies what we call the Complete Artist. The performances in October will be thrilling.”
The solo recital is self-programmed, with works chosen to showcase each individual’s unique gifts, including a newly commissioned work by Iranian-Canadian composer Iman Habibi. The chamber recital will pair each pianist with Edmonton-born cellist Rachel Mercer.
The Second Jury, who will evaluate the Semifinalists and Finalists, are Philippe Bianconi, Jenny Bilfield, Janina Fialkowska, Leila Getz, Anne-Marie McDermott, Roberto Plano, and Awadagin Pratt.
Here’s a look at the semifinalists in alphabetical order. Their age is listed as of October 24, 2025 — the date when the Gold Laureate will be announced.
Ádám Balogh, 28
A native of Pécs, Hungary, Ádám studied in Budapest, Hungary and Hannover, Germany. Ádám Balogh made his orchestral debut at the age of 13 with the Budapest Festival Orchestra. Previous competition wins include the Second Prize of the Bartók World Competition, and the Fifth Prize of the Sydney International Piano Competition. He was a Semifinalist of the Honens and Horowitz competitions, and a Quarterfinalist at the Géza Anda and Cliburn competitions.
Elia Cecino, 24
Elia was born in Treviso, Italy, and studied music in Cesena and Stradella, Italy. He was the First Prize winner of the 2023 Iturbi International Piano Competition (València), where he was also awarded prizes for the best performance of a Beethoven concerto and best interpretation of Chopin’s music. Other wins include first prize at the New Orleans, James Mottram (Manchester), and Ricard Viñes (Spain) competitions. He is also a laureate of the 17th Arthur Rubinstein Piano Master Competition (Tel Aviv), and Vendome Virtuosi winner.
Carter Johnson, 29
The native of Campbell River, British Columbia studied in Vancouver, New York City, and New Haven, US. He’s currently based in Hamden, US. Carter was a silver medalist of the 2024 Gina Bachauer Competition. Other previous wins include first prizes at the 2023 Concours Hauts-deFrance, the 2021 International Competition of Polish Music, the 2020 Valsesia International Competition, and the 2023 Weatherford College International Competition.
Giorgio Lazzari, 25
Giorgio was born in Bergamo, Italy, where he first studied music. He’s also studied in Berlin, where he’s currently based. Lazzari was the top prize winner at International Telekom Beethoven Competition (Bonn) and Robert Schumann Competition (Düsseldorf), and is known for his interpretation of German and Austrian classics.
Sandro Nebieridze, 24
Born in Tbilisi, Georgia, Sandro first studied piano in Tbilisi from the age of five, following up with further studies in Imola, Italy and in Munich, Germany, where he now resides. He is currently pursuing advanced piano studies at the University of Music and Theatre in Munich and the Fondazione Accademia di Imola. Previous prize wins include the Grand Prix at the Grand Piano Competition (Moscow) and Second Prize at the Kissingen KlavierOlymp.
Chaeyoung Park, 28
Chaeyoung was born in Yeouido, South Korea, and went on to study in New York City, where she now lives. Previous accolades and wins include the First Prize at the 2022 Young Concert Artists Susan Wadsworth International Auditions and the Mortimer Levitt Piano Chair at YCA. She was the winner of the 2019 Hilton Head International Piano Competition, and a Finalist at the 2023 Arthur Rubinstein International Master Piano Competition.
Élisabeth Pion, 29
Élisabeth is a native of Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec, and she studied music in Pinerolo, Italy, London, UK, and Montréal. She’s currently based in London. Élisabeth’s previous wins include Second Prize of the 2024 Blanca Uribe International Piano Competition, the Bita-Cattelan Philanthropic Engagement Award at the 2024 Concours musical international de Montréal, the Rosalía de Castro Award at the 2024 Vigo International Piano Competition, and Third Prize at the 2023 Rio Piano Festival.
Anastasia Votonaya, 30
Anastasia was born in Togliatti, Russia, and has studied music in Moscow, Madrid, Como, Italy, and Kansas City, US. She’s currently a resident of Madrid. She has been winning competitions since she was a child, and more recently, took home Second Prize at the 2024 Vigo International Piano Competition in Spain. She was named a finalist and prize winner at the 2023 Iturbi International Piano Competition, and earned a Gold Medal at the 2021 Third Vienna Piano Competition.
Derek Wang, 27
American pianist Derek Wang was born in Newton, Massachusetts, and studied in New Haven and New York City, and in Berlin, Germany. He’s currently based in New York City. His competition winds include Second Prize at the 12th Liszt Utrecht Competition in 2022, and First Prize at the inaugural New York Liszt Competition in 2021. He is presently Creative Enterprise Fellow at Juilliard, where he curates a range of interdisciplinary programs, and shares artistic direction of Juilliard Station, a new street-facing performance space.
Yuanfan Yang, 28
Born in Edinburgh, UK, Yuanfan studied in Manchester and London, and today resides in Leeds. In previous competitions, Yuanfan won First Prize and the Audience Prize at the Casagrande International Piano Competition (Italy), and Second Prize along with special awards for Best Classical Sonata, Best Romantic Work, and Best Chopin Performance at the Ljubljana Festival International Piano Competition (Slovenia). He also won first prize at the UK International Piano Open Competition, and in 2023, he became the first British laureate of the Sydney International Piano Competition in more than 40 years.
The Honens competition is focused not only on virtuosity, but on a concept called The Complete Artist, which includes interpretation, collaboration, risk taking abilities, the ability to express and interpret musical ideas within a broad cultural context, and leadership qualities — among other things.
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