Among the applicants are 12 from Japan and 11 from Hungary, but there are also entries from Turkey, Indonesia and Canada. No minimum age limit has been set by the organising Liszt Academy, with the youngest competitor being 15.

With a total prize fund of more than 51,000 euros (20 million forints), the competition for pianists will open on 3 March, and the repertoire will naturally focus on Bartók's piano works.

The first prize of 5,000 euros was awarded to Korean composer Lee Hanuri, the second prize of 3,000 euros to composer Kim Shin, also Korean; and the third prize of 2,000 euros went to Hungarian composer Mátyás Papp, whose works was selected by an international jury led by world-renowned British composer Thomas Adès.