On Sunday, March 22, family, friends, and supporters gathered in the Henry Le Boeuf Hall at Bozar (Brussels) for the final of the biennial Steinway Piano Competition Belgium.

We present the results by age category, but first a few clarifications. We won't go into individual candidates—this isn't the Queen Elisabeth Competition for young (soon-to-be) professional pianists. In the third category, there may well be candidates we'll encounter sooner or later at the QEC, but that's a different matter from this competition. Any comparison would be impossible.

The beauty of competitions like this is that healthy competition continues to spark interest in classical music. Airheads like the overgrown French-American actor Timothée Chalamet, who made the 'clever' remark that "art forms like opera and ballet are often kept alive these days, even though nobody really cares anymore," are constantly proven wrong—among other things, by competitions like this one. If for no other reason, it's worth keeping this competition alive to silence such foolish statements.

What did stand out is that the focus for these 11- to 18-year-olds was largely on virtuosity. Speed, runs, and such seemed almost more important than musical phrasing. Too many details risk getting lost or do get lost when playing against the clock. It could be slower, clearer in articulation, more singing. Teachers shouldn't let themselves be swept up in trends they then impose on their students. Staying as faithful as possible to the original score is the only right message. That said, we did hear some beautiful performances. A few were quite refined, others more energetic, and yes, one stood head and shoulders above the rest—the jury selected him to perform later at the International Steinway Festival in Hamburg.

We congratulate the finalists and all candidates who participated in this competition. They're not just thumbing their noses at that famous Chalamet—they're above all dedicating themselves with good spirits and motivation, sacrificing much of their free time to master the music more and more and to share it with audiences. That deserves all our appreciation and support.

The Results

• Category 1

First Prize: Keshav Krishnan

Second Prize: Adelheid Keijzer

Third Prize: Noah Huang

• Category 2 2

First Prize: Iris Keijzer

Second Prize: Sverre D'hooghe

Third Prize: Léo D'hose

• Category 3

First Prize and Steinway Overall Prize: Raffaello Giannini

Second Prize: Mahault Ska

Third prize: Van Eldik Ruben

• Audience Award

Van Eldik Ruben