A pair of West Virginia University piano students have advanced to the final round of the Music Teachers National Association Stecher and Horowitz Two Piano Competition.

Hsing-Yi Tsai and Yiwen Zhang entered the competition together to improve their performance skills and participate in a new opportunity. They are no strangers to playing together – the duo made it to the final round of the 2018 Ohio International Piano Duet and Duo Competition and earned second place in the graduate division of the 2019 WVU Chamber Music Competition. 

The competition consists of two rounds, a preliminary round by video submission and the final round, which takes place March 19 at the 2019 MTNA National Conference in Spokane, Washington. 

Tsai and Zhang will perform for the finals En Blanc et Noir by Claude Debussy, Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K. 448 by Wolfgang A. Mozart and Paganini Variations for Two Pianos by Witold Lutoslawski.

To prepare for the finals, Tsai and Zhang have spent at least three hours rehearsing together weekly and plenty more time on their own, polishing their pieces.

We wish them the best of luck on March 19!