An evening of Chopin’s music brought to you by two of the 84 pianists competing in Warsaw for the coveted grand prize at the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition coming up this October, Frost School of Music students and Frost Chopin Academy and Festival participants, Viet Trung Nguyen and Shuguang Gong. 

The program showcases Chopin’s lyrical beauty and dramatic intensity through a sonic voyage into his evocative musical language that he so ingeniously dedicated to the instrument of the piano: from the tender Nocturne in D-flat major to the stormy brilliance of the Etude in B minor, the awe-inspiring Barcarolle and the noble Polonaise in A-flat major, as well as the deeply narrative and complex Ballade in F minor. Nguyen and Gong have also chosen to include some beautiful vignettes, such as selections from the Preludes op. 28, the Waltz in A-flat major, and the Sostenuto in E-flat major. 

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear this inspired program performed by two phenomenal pianists, Shuguang Gong and Viet Trung Nguyen. Learn more about them below: 

Shuguang Gong

A highly prolific pianist from Shandong, China, Shuguang Gong has performed extensively across China, the United States, and Europe, with appearances at the National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing Concert Hall, Yichang Theater, and Neidorff-Karpati Hall. In May 2024, he was featured as soloist in Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie with musicians from Yale, Juilliard and MSM, conducted by Alison Norris, a performance praised for its virtuosity and expressive depth.

Gong is a 2025 Fellow Artist at the Bowdoin International Music Festival, a performing artist at the Eastern Shore Chamber Music Festival, and a soloist of the 2024 Frost Chopin Academy & Festival. His competition successes include first prizes at the 17th Xinghai Cup and the 2017 Chinese Junior Golden Bell National Piano Competition, as well as the Mead Witter Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition.

He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Beijing Normal University and Master of Music from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, also pursuing exchanges at the New England Conservatory, Boston University, and the Birmingham School of Music. Currently, he studies with Kevin Kenner as a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate and teaching assistant at the Frost School of Music, University of Miami. His private teachers include Christopher Taylor and Lanlan Guo. 

Viet Trung Nguyen

Viet Trung Nguyen, born in 1996 in Hanoi, is regarded as one of the leading Vietnamese pianists of his generation. A laureate of major competitions, he won First Prize at the 17th National Piano Festival Chopin’s Interpretations of the Young in 2021, Fifth Prize at the Polish National Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in 2020, and the Grand Prix at the International Chamber Music Competition in Vietnam in 2019. He was also a participant in the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw in 2021.

Nguyen has appeared on international stages across Europe, Asia, and North America, performing in venues such as Salle Cortot in Paris, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, Seoul Arts Center, the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Grand Hall, and at EXPO2020 Dubai. As a soloist, he has performed with the Warsaw Philharmonic, Sun Symphony Orchestra, and Polish Radio Orchestra, under the baton of conductors including Honna Tetsuji, Marek Pijarowski, and Olivier Ochanine.

An active chamber musician, he has collaborated with the Ulysses Quartet, Arod Quartet, and Arso Quintet, and has been featured at festivals including the Arthur Rubinstein Festival in Łódź and the Frost Chopin Academy & Festival in Miami. He graduated from the Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz and is currently pursuing his Doctor of Musical Arts at the University of Miami under Professor Kevin Kenner.

Concert Program:

Frederic Chopin: 

• Nocturne in D-flat major Op. 27 No. 2
• Etude in B minor Op. 25 No. 10
• Waltz in A-flat major Op. 42
• Barcarolle in F-sharp major Op. 60
• Ballade in F minor Op. 52 No. 4 
• Polonaise in A-flat major Op. 53

• Preludes 13-18, Op. 28
• Andante Spianato et Grande Polonaise Brilliante in E flat major, Op. 22
• Scherzo No. 4 in E major, Op. 54
• Sostenuto in E-flat major

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