KEVIN ZHU - 2022 FINALE CONCERT FEATURED SOLOIST
In the 2022-23 season, Kevin Zhu will make concerto debuts with the Des Moines Symphony and at the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, and embarks on a project to record the 24 Paganini Caprices on Paganini’s famed violin ‘Il Cannone’, something never done before in history. He will perform the complete Caprices in Italy, Singapore, and Germany, and makes his Merkin Hall recital debut with a program inspired by ballet and operatic masterpieces.
In addition to his efforts on stage, Kevin serves as a Culture Ambassador of the Lin Yao Ji Music Foundation of China. He has been featured on ABC Eyewitness News, BBC Radio 3, and RAI Radio 3, and is the recipient of a 2021 Avery Fisher Career Grant and Salon de Virtuosi Career Grant.
Kevin recently graduated from The Juilliard School, where he studied with Itzhak Perlman and Li Lin. Kevin performs on the c1722 “Lord Wandsworth” Antonio Stradivari violin, which is on loan from the Ryuji Ueno Foundation and Rare Violins In Consortium, Artists and Benefactors Collaborative.
Visit www.kevinzhuviolin.com for all the news about Kevin’s latest projects!
YESONG SOPHIE LEE - 2021 FINALE CONCERT FEATURED SOLOIST
Following her stunning performance of Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 1 at the 2021 Atlanta Festival Academy’s Finale Concert, violinist Yesong Sophie Lee enrolled at the Curtis Institute of Music at just 17 years of age. Sophie first rose to international prominence by winning First Prize in the 2016 Menuhin Violin Competition’s Junior Division in London at the age of 12.
Since then she has performed with the London Philharmonia, Berlin Konzerthaus Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Richmond Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Orchestre des Cameristi de la Scala, Bremerton Symphony, Detroit Symphony and Calgary Philharmonic.
Sophie currently performs on the 1687 “Ex-Bello” Antonio Stradivarius, on generous loan from Rare Violins In Consortium Artists and Benefactors Collaborative.
CHLOE CHUA - 2019 FINALE CONCERT FEATURED SOLOIST
As the featured soloist of the inaugural Atlanta Festival Academy in 2019 , Chloe Chua wowed audiences with her performances of Vivaldi’s Winter, Sarasate’s Carmen Fantasy, and Mendelssohn’s Concerto in e minor! Chloe, too, won First Prize in the Menuhin Violin Competition’s Junior Division and did so in 2018 as one of the youngest winners in the Competition ever.
Chloe has gone on to perform with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, China Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, Salzburg Chamber Soloists, Russian National Youth Orchestra, Kammerorchester Basel, and the China Philharmonic Orchestra. She also amazed the hosts of TwoSet Violin with her outstanding technique and musicality!
She currently performs on a 1729 violin by Peter Guarneri of Venice on a generous loan from The Rin Collection.
Visit www.chloechuaviolinist.com for the latest news about where and when Chloe is performing!
2019 - NICHOLAS WONG
Cellist Nicholas Wong gave an amazing performance of Bohuslav Martinu’s Variations on a Theme by Rossini at the 2019 Atlanta Festival Academy’s Rising Stars concert! Before performing at our Rising Stars concert, Nicholas shared first prize in the 10-to-11-Year-Old Junior Age Category at the 2019 David Popper International Cello Competition.
Not even in high school yet, Nicholas has gone on to win the Honors Prize in the Virtuosos category at the 2020 France Music Competition presented by Association Les Musicales du Centre!
2019 - CHRISTINA NAM
Currently a full-scholarship student at the Juilliard School, Christina Nam has already performed as a soloist with numerous symphony orchestras around the world including the Cleveland Orchestra and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. She has twice appeared on NPR’s “From the Top” and represented the USA at the Menuhin Competition’s Bow Passing Ceremony during the 2018 Closing Gala Concert.
At the 2019 Atlanta Festival Academy’s Rising Stars concert, Christina gave wonderful performances of Wagner’s Albumblatt and Saint-Saen’s Havanaise!
2019 - KUO LIU
Violinist Kuo Liu’s rousing performance of Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst’s extraordinarily virtuosic The Last Rose of Summer brought the audience to its feet at the 2019 Atlanta Festival Academy’s Rising Stars concert!
Liu’s artistry and technique have been hailed by audiences and competition judges for more than a decade now, as his accomplishments include the Gold Medal at the Beijing-China Soloist Competition for Young Violinists, First Place at the Hongkong International Violin Competition, and Second Prize on the national level of the Competition of Mozart’s Works for China’s Young Pianists and Violinists.