ANNOUNCEMENT: 7th Steinway Youth Piano Competition – Intermediate Semi Finals Results
May 17, 2025
INTERMEDIATE CLASS: SEMI FINALS RESULTS
Steinway Boutique Manila is proud to present the following young talents who have successfully advanced to the Finals of the 7th Steinway Youth Piano Competition, scheduled to take place on June 1, 2025. Please stay tuned for your official acceptance email and further instructions, which will be sent to the email address you used during application.
The names of the contestants are as follow:
CATEGORY 1
Ichika Suzuki
Drue Lucien Ely Metillo
Avery Liu
CATEGORY 2
Shi Jin
Edge Rayleigh Manesca
CATEGORY 3
Wendell Adriel Asuncion
CATEGORY 4
Sage Araneta
Zildjian Zachary Viray
Alphonsus Salomon
*Results are not in order of merit
We would also like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere gratitude to our esteemed panel of judges for generously sharing their time and expertise. We are confident that the invaluable insights provided by these distinguished pianists and educators will greatly inspire and guide our young participants in their piano-learning journey.
OUR HONORABLE JUDGES
MITA ANTONIA S. FERNANDEZ
MITA ANTONIA S. FERNANDEZ is a graduate of a Bachelor of Music degree, Major in Piano Performance from the University of the Philippines College of Music and a Master of Music graduate in Piano Pedagogy from the Philippine Women’s University. She is presently a full-time Asst. Professor of Piano at the UP College of Music where she teaches piano performance, piano pedagogy and instrumental literature.
She has served the University since 1990 and has exhibited remarkable teaching skills not only for the sighted but for the visually impaired as well. She was the teacher of the first blind Piano major graduate of the UP College of Music. She has extended this mentorship to include piano majors who are on the autism spectrum. An active member of the Piano Teacher’s Guild of the Philippines, her students have participated in music festivals and are prize winners in piano competitions. As a faculty member, she has served as jury panel member to numerous auditions and recitals in her department and other departments as well. She is active in university performances and outreach programs initiated by the UP Keyboard faculty.
She is one of the pianists in the Music Anniversary presentation of Tikladong Hirang for 5 Pianos and Orchestra held at the Abelardo Hall Auditorium, the UPCMu Keyboard department Mozart Festival, Tanging Atin Concert to launch the Walumpu’t Walong Tiklado fundraising concert, the Lahing Kayumanggi Concert during the Arts month held in San Clemente Parish in Angono Rizal, the Makiling Music Festival held at the Philippine High School for the Arts, the Soundscapes of Central Europe Concert in cooperation with the Embassy of Poland, Embassy of the Czech Republic, Embassy of Hungary and the Embassy of Slovakia. Most recently, she was a pianist in Confluences I, a Tribute to Nena del Rosario-Villanueva and part of the Thursday Evening Concert featuring the Keyboard Department faculty at the UP College of Music. She has done research and creative works in both the secular and religious fields of Philippine Music. She has written papers on the music of the Carmelite nuns in the Philippines. She has done research on the Piano Ensemble works of Dr. Rodolfo S. Cornejo in the context of piano pedagogy and performance and presented it in a lecture-demonstration at the University of the Philippines. She was also a speaker/pianist in a lecture demonstration on selected Filipino works held at the Philippine Women’s University.
Prof. Fernandez was a researcher and junior editor of the published Dictionary of Filipino Musical Terms (First edition) organized by the UP Center for Ethnomusicology and supported by the UP Diliman Office of the Chancellor, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Development, NCCA, UNESCO and the Japan Foundation Manila. She is a member of several college committees such as the Student Disciplinary Council, the Music Personnel Welfare Committee and the PRAISE Committee. She was a past secretary and board member and past president (1997-2000) of the UP College of Music Alumni Association. Prof. Fernandez is presently the Chairman of the University of the Philippines College of Music, Keyboard Department.
INNA MONTESCLAROS
Filipina pianist Inna Montesclaros made her concert debut at age 8 and her orchestral debut at 11 with the Manila Symphony Orchestra, performing Mozart’s D minor concerto. Since then, she has performed with orchestras in the Philippines, such as the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra and the University of Santo Tomas Symphony Orchestra, among others, as well as with orchestras in the United Kingdom , playing works by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Brahms, Rachmaninoff, and Gershwin.
As a scholar, she completed her Bachelor of Music at the Royal College of Music with Prof. Ian Jones and earned a Master of Arts and Advanced Diploma from the Royal Academy of Music with Prof. Ian Fountain, graduating with First Class marks and Distinction. She credits her early training to Prof. Cecile Basilio Roxas and Dr. Raul Sunico
Known for her warm tones and sincere musicality, Inna has performed solo concerts in venues worldwide, including the Duke’s Hall in London, UK, the Teatro Municipal de Las Condes in Santiago, Chile, Hanoi Opera House, and the Cultural Center of the Philippines, as well as other venues in the US, Italy, Romania, the Netherlands, Austria, Hungary, South Korea, and Japan.
A seasoned competitor, Inna has won multiple awards, including Gold Prize at the 2009 Asia International Piano Academy Festival, Silver Prize at the 1st International Piano Competition in Hanoi, and Bronze Prize at the 4th International Chopin Piano Competition in Malaysia. She has also won first prizes in five major Philippine piano competitions, including winning the National Music Competition for Young Artists, twice. She was a semifinalist at the Bromsgrove International Music Competition and won first prize at the Danubia Talents International Music Competition in Hungary. She was also chosen to participate in the prestigious Georges Enescu International Festival and Competition in Bucharest, Romania.
A multi-talented artist, Inna combines her love for music with visual arts, having presented her work at the 2018 Bloomsbury Festival in London and the RAM Piano Festival. Her 2025 season includes a short European tour, a performance at the Goldenberg Mansion in Malacañang Palace, a cross-arts concert featuring animations of her art, multiple concerts collaborating with top artists in the Philippines. In addition to performing, Inna has given masterclasses in Chile, Hungary, and the Philippines, and has been invited to judge piano competitions, including LYRIC, and the Steinway Competition. She also produces masterclasses and concerts featuring international musicians, committed to bringing top talents to Manila.
Pia Margarita Diño Balasico
Pia Margarita Diño Balasico is Associate Professor at the Keyboard Department, UP College of Music.
Education:
Master of Music Degree Major in Piano (University of the Philippines)
Bachelor of Music Degree Major in Piano, Magna Cum Laude (University of the Philippines)
High School (Immaculata Academy of Malolos)
Elementary (Immaculata Academy of Malolos)
Raised in a family of piano teachers, Pia Margarita Diño Balasico’s prodigious talent was nurtured at a very early age and blossomed to its fullest under the tutelage of Prof. Regalado Jose. At the age of six, won the Honorable Mention at the National Music Competition for Young Artists (NAMCYA) in 1973. Five years later, she bagged the first prize. She went on winning the 3rd prize of the Bach Piano Competition in 1984 and the top prize of the Lizst Piano Competition in 1986.
A Recipient of the Rosario Lopez Garcia Scholarship and the Generoso Villanueva Scholarship, Pia finished Bachelor of Music Degree in Piano (1989), Magna Cum Laude and Master of Music degree in Piano (1997) from the University of the Philippines College of Music. She has extensively performed both as a soloist and as a chamber musician in major concert venues in the country. Highlights of these are “Resist! “ Anthems of Struggle and Triumph as one of the featured artists with the UP Symphony Orchestra in February 2019; a repeat of “Resist!” at the University of the Philippines Los baños Laguna in March 2019; Annual Concert of the Champions (NAMCYA) at the Cultural Center of the Philippines; the 3 Grands: A Piano Celebration with ianists Abelardo Gallang II and Artemio Panganiban III at CCP in January 2009; Piano Duo Recitals with Artemio Panganiban III, and Augusto Espino at the UP Abelardo Hall Auditorium in 2009; Back to back concert with Luci Magalit at the PHILAM Life Auditorium in 2009; She was also a featured soloist of the Metro Manila Symphony Orchestra in 1979 and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra in 1980 under the baton of his mentor Professor Regalado Jose. Pia is an Associate Professor of the University of the Philippines College of Music. Her excellent pedagogy has produced prize-winners among the country’s best young pianists