Wei-Yi Yang

Internationally acclaimed pianist Wei-Yi Yang enjoys a flourishing concert career, appearing before audiences in North and Central America, Asia, Europe, and Australia in solo recitals, chamber music concerts and with symphony orchestras. Winner of the Gold Medal and Grand Prize in the fifth San Antonio International Piano Competition, Mr. Yang has performed in such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Steinway Hall, Merkin Hall in New York; the Kennedy Center in Washington; the Kumho Art Hall in Seoul, South Korea; the Royal Scottish Academy of Music in Glasgow, Scotland; the Great Hall in Leeds, England; the Royal Dublin Society in Dublin, Ireland; and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Sydney, among many other major concert stages. An avid chamber musician, Mr. Yang has performed with members of some of the world's finest ensembles, including the New York Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, Orpheus and Saint Paul Chamber orchestras, the London Symphony, Singapore Symphony, Orquestra do Estado de Saõ Paulo, and Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society II.

Born in Taiwan of Chinese and Japanese heritage, Mr. Yang was first educated in the United Kingdom, then as a scholarship recipient under the tutelage of Russian pianist Arkady Aronov at New York City's Manhattan School of Music. Additionally, Mr. Yang has worked with Claude Frank, Peter Frankl, Vera Gornostaeva, Byron Janis, Murray Perahia, and the late Hans Graf. Under the guidance of Boris Berman, Mr. Yang was awarded a Doctorate in Musical Arts by Yale University in 2004. In addition to receiving numerous awards and fellowships, Mr. Yang has also garnered top prizes in the Manhattan Concerto Competition, New York's Five Town Arts Foundation Competition, the San Jose International Piano Competition, and the Long Island Young Artist Competition. Mr. Yang co-founded the award-winning Soyulla Ensemble, which recently debuted at Alice Tully Hall, toured Korea, and released a CD on the Renegade Classics label. Mr. Yang's performances have been featured around the globe via international television, radio, and web broadcasting medias. An avid chamber musician, Mr. Yang has appeared at festivals in Novi Sad (Serbia), Monterrey (Mexico), Kotor (Montenegro), Norfolk (Connecticut), Napa Valley and La Jolla (California). In recent festival performances, Mr. Yang has collaborated with such renowned artists as mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade and the Naumburg-winning Pacifica String Quartet. Mr. Yang will make his concerto debut in Hong Kong next season, and will serve on the selection jury for the 2009 San Antonio International Piano Competition. Wei-Yi Yang joined the faculty at Yale University in 2005.