Derek Chung is freshman at Adlai S. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, IL. He studies piano with Sueanne Metz. Derek’s recent accomplishments include first prizes at the Luminarts Cultural Foundation for Classical Music, DePauw University Young Artist, US New Star Piano, the American Fine Arts International Concerto, and the Los Angeles Young Musician International Competitions where he was awarded overall Best Romantic Performance. He won second place at the Aloha International Piano, Emilio del Rosario Piano Concerto, Bradshaw & Buono International Piano, and the Crain-Maling Chicago Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competitions. He was also a winner of Best Early Music Award at Walgreens National Concerto Competition and the bronze medal winner at Seattle International Piano Festival Competitions.
Derek has had the honor of performing in musical venues such as Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall in Seattle, Bennett-Gordon Hall at Ravinia, Chicago Symphony Orchestra Hall, and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York. He has participated in master classes with Robert Shannon, Scott McBride-Smith, Haewon Song, Steven Spooner, Stella Sick, Jack Winerock, and John Bayless. He has attended the Cooper Piano Festival at Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the IIYM summer academy at the University of Kansas. Derek is also a member of chamber group Piano Trio Royale. The group was a semi-finalist at the Fischoff National Chamber Competition and the first place winner of the Rembrandt Chamber Competition. Outside of music, Derek enjoys reading books and running cross-country. He is also a member of the elite mathematics team for Stevenson.