Cho-Liang Lin

Cho-Liang Lin was born in Taiwan. A neighbor’s study of the violin convinced this five-year-old boy to do the same. At age 12, he moved to Sydney to further his studies with Robert Pikler, a student of Jenő Hubay. After playing for Itzhak Perlman in a master class, the 13-year-old boy decided that he must study with Mr. Perlman’s teacher, Dorothy DeLay. At 15, Lin traveled alone to New York and auditioned for The Juilliard School and spent the next six years working with Ms. DeLay.

A concert career was launched in 1980 with Lin’s debut performing the Mendelssohn Concerto with the New York Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta. He has since performed as soloist with virtually every major orchestra in the world. His busy schedule on stage around the world continues to this day. However, his wide ranging interests have led him to diverse endeavors. At the age of 31, The Juilliard School invited him to serve on the faculty, and in 2006, he was appointed professor at Rice University. He has been music director of La Jolla SummerFest and the Hong Kong International Chamber Music Festival. Ever so keen about education, he was music director of the Taiwan National Symphony music camp and youth orchestra for four years.

In his various professional capacities, Cho-Liang Lin has championed composers of our time. His efforts to commission new works have led a diverse field of composers to write for him. The list includes John Harbison, Christopher Rouse, Tan Dun, John Williams, Steven Stucky, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Bright Sheng, Paul Schoenfield, Lalo Schifrin, Joan Tower and many more. Recently, he was soloist with the New York Philharmonic, Detroit Symphony, Munich Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Nashville Symphony and the Royal Philharmonic.

Lin performs on the 1715 Stradivari named “Titian,” or a 2000 Samuel Zygmuntowicz. His many concerto, recital and chamber music recordings on Sony Classical, Decca, BIS, Delos and Ondine can be heard on Spotify or Naxos.com. His albums have won Gramophone Record Of The Year, Grammy nominations and Penguin Guide Rosettes.