Noël Wan of Taiwan won the gold medal winner at the 12th USA International Harp Competition (USAIHC) following the final stage of the triennial contest held July 9 in Bloomington, Indiana, capping four stages of competition over 10 days. Huw Boucher of Wales won the silver medal and Hyejin Kim of South Korea took home the bronze. More than 40 harpists from 20 countries participated in the contest. Other winners are Noelia Cotuna Rizea (Spain), fourth prize; Johanna Dorothea Goerissen (Germany), fifth prize; Mared Pugh-Evans (Wales), sixth prize; Chenyang Jing (Japan), seventh prize; and Jae In Yoo (South Korea), eighth prize. Wan also won the Mario Falcao prize for the best performance of self by Ari Schwartz. Boucher received the Willy Postma prize for the best performance of Gabriel Pierné's Concertstück, Op. 39.
Watch for additional coverage of the 12th USAIHC in the upcoming September/October 2022 issue of Harp Column.
