Yu-Chien (Benny) Tseng (; born August 24, 1994) is a Taiwanese

violinist The following lists of violinists are available: * List of classical violinists * List of contemporary classical violinists * List of jazz violinists * List of popular music violinists * List of Indian violinists * List of Persian violinists * Li ...

. In 2012 he was fifth laureate in the

Queen Elisabeth Music Competition The Queen Elisabeth Competition (, ) is an international competition for career-starting musicians held in City of Brussels, Brussels. The competition is named after Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Belgium, Queen Elisabeth of Belgium (1876–1 ...

, where he also won both the

Musiq'3 Musiq'3 is a Belgian public-service radio station operated by RTBF. Its output is centred on classical music. The current director is Bernard Meillat. The channel first went on air – as the ''Troisième Programme'' of the then existing RTB (Rad ...

and the

Klara Klara may refer to: * Klara, a female given name, see Clara (given name) * Klara (radio), a classical-music radio station in Belgium * Klara (singer), birth name ...

Canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, plain-woven Cloth, fabric used for making sails, tents, Tent#Marquees and larger tents, marquees, backpacks, Shelter (building), shelters, as a Support (art), support for oil painting and for other ite ...

prizes awarded by the public. In the 15th

International Tchaikovsky Competition The International Tchaikovsky Competition is a classical music competition held every four years in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia, for pianists, violinists, and cellists between 16 and 32 years of age and singers between 19 and 32 years of ...

held in 2015, Tseng won the 2nd prize in the violin contest, in which no first prize was awarded. Tseng has recorded for Fuga Libera and the

Chimei Museum The Chimei Museum () is a private museum established in 1992 by Shi Wen-long of Chi Mei Corporation in Rende District, Tainan, Taiwan. The museum's collection is divided into five categories: Fine arts (including painting, sculpture, decorative ...

Life and career

Yu-Chien Tseng was born in

Taipei County New Taipei City is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality located in regions of Taiwan, northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 4,004,367 as of January 2023, making it the most populous city in Taiwan, a ...

(now

New Taipei City New Taipei City is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality located in regions of Taiwan, northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 4,004,367 as of January 2023, making it the most populous city in Taiwan, a ...

). 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 The Taipei Symphony Orchestra (TSO, ), founded in 1969, is one of the leading orchestras based in Taipei, Taiwan. TSO works with European music directors and conductors, such as Reinhard Goebel, Martin Fischer-Dieskau, and Maurice Steger. O ...

. In his native

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

, 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 The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on a full scholarshi ...

, under professors

Ida Kavafian Ida Kavafian () (born October 29, 1952, in Istanbul) is an American classical violinist and violist. Biography Kavafian was born in Turkey to Armenian parents. She moved with her family to America in 1956, and began studying violin in Detroit ...

and

Aaron Rosand Aaron Rosand (born Aaron Rosen; March 15, 1927 – July 9, 2019) was an American classical violinist and violin pedagogue. Life and career Born in Hammond, Indiana, he studied with Leon Sametini at the Chicago Musical College and with Efrem ...

. In 2009 he won the 10th Pablo Sarasate International Competition in Pamplona (Spain). In 2011 he won the

Isang Yun Competition The ISANGYUN Competition is an international music competition, held annually in Tongyeong, South Korea. It commemorates Isang Yun (1917–1995), a Korean composer who was born in Tongyeong and later settled in Germany. The competition was est ...

in Tongyeong (South Korea) and also was awarded a special prize at the XIV

(as best of those in Round II who did not make the finals). In 2012 he took fifth place in the

Queen Elisabeth Competition The Queen Elisabeth Competition (, ) is an international competition for career-starting musicians held in City of Brussels, Brussels. The competition is named after Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Belgium, Queen Elisabeth of Belgium (1876–1 ...

in Brussels. He has performed with the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

, the

National Orchestra of Belgium The Belgian National Orchestra (, ) is a Belgian orchestra, based in Brussels. Its principal concert venue is the Brussels Centre for Fine Arts (BOZAR). The orchestra also gives concerts outside Brussels in such cities as Sankt-Vith and Hasselt. ...

, and the symphony orchestras of Singapore, Taipei, and Navarra among others. He has given solo concerts in cities in the US, Europe and Asia. In 2017, Tseng was featured in the opening ceremony of the

2017 Summer Universiade The 2017 Summer Universiade (), officially known as the XXIX Summer Universiade ( zh, t=第二十九屆夏季世界大學運動會, p=Dì èrshíjiǔ jiè xiàjì shìjiè dàxué yùndònghuì) and commonly called Taipei 2017 ( zh, t=台北201 ...

Taipei, Taiwan , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...

with a solo violin performance.

Awards

* 2006: Third Prize in

Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists The Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists (or simply the Menuhin Competition) is an international music competition for violinists under the age of 16. It was founded by Yehudi Menuhin in 1983 with the goal of nurturing you ...

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

* 2011: First Prize and Isang Yun Special Prize in

in Tongyeong (South Korea) * 2012: Fifth Prize in

* 2015: First Prize in Singapore International Violin Competition * 2015: Second Prize in the XV

(no first prize awarded)

Recordings

His debut disc featuring music by French composers was released by Fuga Libera. * ''Franck, Ravel, Debussy - French Violin Sonatas'' with Inga Dzektser, piano (Fuga Libera: FUG597) * ''Sarasate Violin Pieces'' (Chimei Museum: S000887011011088) * ''Reverie: Chopin, Ernst, Mozart, Tartini, Tchaikovsky, Wieniawski'' with

Rohan De Silva Rohan De Silva is a Sri Lankan pianist. De Silva initially studied at Isipathana College, Colombo and later he migrated abroad to study at the Royal Academy of Music, London and The Juilliard School, New York, while working with violinist Doroth ...

, piano (Universal Music Taiwan /

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

: UCCG-1774)

References

VC ‘Young Artist’ Yu-Chien Benny Tseng Awarded Top Prize at Tchaikovsky Violin Comp , The Violin ChannelYu-Chien Tseng: Sibelius and Tchaikovsky Concertos , Violin: Final Round , The XV International Tchaikovsky CompetitionTchaikovsky Competition 2015: violinist Yu-Chien Tseng performs Valse-Scherzo , The Strad

VC YOUNG ARTIST , Yu-Chien Benny Tseng, 20 – Sarasate, Isang Yun & Singapore Competition 1st Prizes , The Violin ChannelTseng, Yu-Chien , CLASSICTIC.COMTeenage violinist performs with National Symphony Orchestra , Culture.tw

External links

* * *
Performance Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto , 3rd Mvt
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tseng, Yu-Chien 1994 births Living people Musicians from New Taipei Taiwanese violinists Taiwanese classical musicians Curtis Institute of Music alumni Prize-winners of the International Tchaikovsky Competition Prize-winners of the Queen Elisabeth Competition Paganini Competition prize-winners 21st-century classical violinists