Yu-Chien Tseng Yu-Chien Tseng

Yu-Chien Tseng (Chinese: 曾宇謙; pinyin: Tseng Yeǔ-Chien) (born August 24th, 1994) is a Taiwanese violinist. In 2012 he was fifth laureate in the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition, where he also won both the Musiq'3 and the Klara-Canvas prizes awarded by the public. In 2015 he won the second prize in the International Tchaikovsky Competition, the highest prize in the violin competition since there was no first prize that year. Tseng has recorded for Fuga Libera and the Chimei Museum.

Life and career

Yu-Chien Tseng was born in New Taipei, Taiwan. In pre-school, Tseng's parents worried that he was tone deaf. His father enrolled him in percussion classes after hearing tests showed Tseng's hearing to be normal. He started to study the violin at the age of 5. By the age of 6, he had already performed with the Taipei Symphony Orchestra. In his native Taiwan, he studied with Po-Shan Lin, Ying-Liang Shen, I-Ching Li and C. Nanette Chen. Since 2008 he has studied at the Curtis Institute of Music, under professors Ida Kavafian and Aaron Rosand. In 2009 he won the 10th Pablo Sarasate International Competition in Pamplona (Spain). In 2011 he won the Isang Yun Competition in Tongyeong (South Korea) and also was awarded a special prize at the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition (as best of those in Round II who did not make the finals). In 2012 he took fifth place in the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels. He has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the National Orchestra of Belgium, and the symphony orchestras of Singapore, Taipei, and Navarra among others. He has given solo concerts in cities in the US, Europe and Asia.

Awards

• 2006: Third Prize in Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists Junior division
• 2009: First Prize and Prize to Best Interpreter of Works by Sarasate in 10th Pablo Sarasate International Competition in Pamplona (Spain)
• 2010: Associazione Amici di Paganini Prize and Prize in memory of Dr. Enrico Costa in the 53rd Paganini Competition
• 2011: Jury Discretionary Award in The XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition
• 2011: First Prize and Isang Yun Special Prize in Isang Yun Competition in Tongyeong (South Korea)
• 2012: Fifth Prize in Queen Elisabeth Competition
• 2015: First Prize in Singapore International Violin Competition
• 2015: Second Prize in the XV International Tchaikovsky Competition (no first prize awarded)

Recordings

His debut disc featuring music by French composers was released by Fuga Libera.

• Franck, Ravel, Debussy - French Violin Sonatas (Fuga Libera: FUG597)
• Sarasate Violin Pieces (Chimei Museum: S000887011011088)