Masterclass for Jr.G grade (PTNA Piano Competition) was held on June 12-13th at Senzoku Gakuen College of Music.

Prof.LIM Chong-Pil, professor of Korea National University of Arts, gave masterclass for 14 finalists, who were chosen from the preliminary audition.
 As the teacher of several prize winners of international competitions, Prof.Lim gave various musical ideas with passion and elegance, and led young pianists to make them think and play at their own initiatives. By showing demonstration performances from memory, he explained the way to understand the styles of music, effects of soft pedal, transition of characters corresponding to the change of harmony, difference of musical expression of each composer, appropriate physical movements and hand forms, etc.

Prof.Kunio Sasaki, composer, gave another masterclass focusing on the musical analyse. 14 finalists were divided into 3 groups, and each masterclass began with the ensemble performance of Radetzky-Marsch with electronic pianos.

Prof.Sasaki explained what kind of elements and ideas form the music, referring to Invention by Bach, Etudes by Czerny, and his self-written pieces. Those masterclasses had been recorded and DVD were given to all the participants.

In the evening of 2nd day, 14 candidates appeared on stage at the final concert. Everyone tried to understand and took in what they had learned at the masterclasses, and showed beautiful performances. At the final ceremony, Prof.Lim handed the card to each of them, conveying his message of appreciation and expectation to their future.

Jr.G grade is designed to discover and nurture young promising talents under 16. This year, 14 finalists were selected from paper screening auditions in March, five months prior to the final round in August. In between those period, renowned professors teach in master classes to encourage their musical progress. This masterclass began in 2004, and Prof.Boris Petrushansky(2004), Prof.Tatiana Zelikman(2006) and Prof.Choong-Mo Kang(2008) were served as lecturers.