Chopin has taken TikTok by storm. Generation Z has a new musical obsession!

Live broadcasts from the 19th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition—the first edition partnered with the video platform—generated over 91 million views on TikTok. Users from around the world could watch the pianists' performances.

The Chopin Competition, held since 1927, is one of the oldest and most prestigious musical events in the world. Held every five years in Warsaw, it is also one of the few monographic competitions, as all stages feature works by a single composer – Fryderyk Chopin.

For Poland, this event is fundamental in promoting Polish culture. The competition pays tribute to the work of Fryderyk Chopin, popularizing his music, and proving that it is still alive. At the same time, it is of paramount importance in promoting Poland's image as a country with a rich cultural and musical tradition. And for the pianists themselves, winning this prestigious competition is a springboard to international careers.

This year 's 19th edition inaugurates the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Competition and, for the first time, brings its atmosphere to the TikTok platform.

- LIVE broadcasts of the pianists' performances were viewed on TikTok over 91 million times , with over 8.5 million likes and thousands of comments under the recordings - the platform informs.

The official TikTok profile of the Fryderyk Chopin Institute has doubled its number of new followers in recent weeks. It's where users can find LIVE broadcasts, exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, participant testimonials, and the most beautiful performance excerpts.

The broadcasts on October 5th generated the most excitement among viewers, garnering the most comments. Meanwhile, the finalists' concerts on Day 19 of the Competition garnered a record number of reactions and became the most-watched moment of the entire event.

Chopin and his work have thus reached a wider audience, encompassing not only classical music fans. Listeners from around the world have discovered the emotions that accompany Chopin's music. Some have drawn interesting comparisons, such as comparing Chopin's "Funeral March" with the music of Nirvana.

"Cultural institutions are using TikTok with great success, fulfilling their mission of bringing awareness to and promoting heritage, educating, and building dialogue with audiences. They are increasingly bold in utilizing communication formats that were previously not taken for granted, achieving excellent results not only in building reach but also in attracting new audiences to museums, concert halls, and exhibitions. The first-ever TikTok Live collaboration with the Chopin Competition resonated with tens of millions of concert stream views worldwide, thousands of comments, millions of reactions, and multi-threaded discussions about classical music, promoting and nurturing the legacy of Fryderyk Chopin," emphasized Łukasz Gabler, public policy manager at TikTok, in a press release.

The platform's collaboration with the Fryderyk Chopin Institute also allowed users to actively experience the Polish pianist's music. During the Chopin Competition, TikTok, along with its participants, launched a series of three "Piano Masterclasses," professional livestreams in which young pianists shared their knowledge and experience with an online audience. These lessons generated over 2.37 million views.

Platform users could also participate in the "Chopin's Whispers" competition, in which artists from across Europe showcased their musical talents by performing pieces inspired by Chopin's work. 581 artists participated in the competition, and videos of their performances garnered over 2.3 million views.

"We are delighted that the Chopin Competition has been so enthusiastically received by the international TikTok community. Tens of millions of views and hundreds of thousands of reactions demonstrate that classical music resonates well even in modern formats. We hope that those who joined the online concert broadcasts will continue to discover Chopin's works and be inspired to reach for classical music in their daily lives," says Dr. Aleksander Laskowski, spokesperson for the Fryderyk Chopin Institute.

As the platform's data shows, this is incredibly fertile ground, as interest in classical music is growing. The hashtag #Chopin already has over 108,000 posts, and #ClassicalMusic has grown by 60% in the last 12 months, creating one of the most dynamic communities around culture and art.