
Huiping Cai, China

Huiping Cai is a pianist praised for her “dignified and mature approach” (Third Coast Review), as well as for her lyricism, nuanced musicality, and formidable technique. She was awarded First Prize and the Audience Award at the 2023 New York Franz Liszt International Piano Competition. Additional first prizes include the 2022 Los Angeles International Liszt Competition; the 2019 Chopin International Piano Competition in Hartford, Connecticut; the 2018 Miami Music Festival Piano Concerto Competition; and the 2017 Philadelphia International Piano Competition.
In 2023, Cai made her Carnegie Hall debut, performing at both Weill Recital Hall and Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. She has appeared as concerto soloist with the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong VTC Symphony Orchestra, Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestra, Kazakhstan National Symphony Orchestra, Miami Music Festival Orchestra, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, and the Temple University Symphony Orchestra. Her performances have taken her to the United States, Mexico, Russia, Kazakhstan, and China. She has also been featured as a soloist on WRTI (Philadelphia), WSMR (Florida), and WFMT’s Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts in Chicago.
Cai is a graduate of the New England Conservatory, where she studied with Dang Thai Son and served as a teaching assistant. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in piano performance and literature at the Eastman School of Music, studying with Alan Chow and serving as his teaching assistant. Concurrently, she is completing a second Master of Music degree in piano accompanying and chamber music under the guidance of Dr. Andrew Harley.
First Round
- Sergei Rachmaninoff: “Lilacs” from 12 Romances, Op. 21, No. 5
- Joseph Haydn: Sonata in C Major, Hob. XVI:48
- Andante con espressione
- Rondo: Presto
- Johann Sebastian Bach: Prelude and Fugue in g minor, No. 16, from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I, BWV 861
- Frédéric Chopin: Étude in a minor, Op. 25, No. 11, “Winter Wind”
- Franz Liszt: Grande Étude de Paganini No. 6 in a minor, S. 141
Quarterfinal Round
- Igor Stravinsky (transcribed Agosti): The Firebird
- Danse Infernale du roi Kastcheï
- Berceuse
- Finale
- Olga Kern: Status Animae (State of Soul)—Two Pieces for Solo Piano
- Meditation
- Rhythm Obsession
- Franz Liszt: Sonata in b minor, S. 178
Semifinal Round—Chamber Music
- Robert Schumann: Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44
- Allegro brillante
- In modo d’una marcia. Un poco largamente
- Scherzo: Molto vivace
- Allegro ma non troppo
Final Round
- Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3 in d minor, Op. 30
- Allegro ma non tanto
- Intermezzo: Adagio
- Finale: Alla breve
2025 Participants
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