Tsujii sets record for pianists

An album by Nobuyuki Tsujii, a pianist who captured the nation's imagination when he won an international competition recently, rocketed to second place on the latest Oricon weekly music chart.

Tsujii's first album, "debut," landed in the second slot on the June 15-21 chart, the highest ranking ever by a classical pianist, according to Oricon Inc.

The best previous showing by a pianist came in 1991, when Yukie Nishimura's "The 101st Propose," a soundtrack for a popular drama series, rose to No. 3.

Tsujii, 20, who was born blind, won the 13th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth, Texas, on June 7.(IHT/Asahi: June 24,2009)