Yu-Chien (Benny) Tseng (Chinese: 曾宇謙; pinyin: Zēng Yǔqiān; Wade–Giles: Tsêng Yü-ch'ien; born August 24, 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.[1] In the 15th International Tchaikovsky Competition held in 2015, Tseng won the 2nd prize in the violin contest, in which no first prize was awarded.[2] Tseng has recorded for Fuga Libera and the Chimei Museum.

Yu-Chien Tseng
曾宇謙
Yu-Chien Tseng photographed in 2020.
Born (1994-08-24) August 24, 1994 (age 30)
Other namesBenny
EducationCurtis Institute of Music
OccupationClassical violinist
Years active2005 - present
Websiteyuchientseng.com

Life and career

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Yu-Chien Tseng was born in Taipei County (now New Taipei City). In pre-school, Tseng's parents worried that he was tone deaf.[3][4] 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.

In 2017, Tseng was featured in the opening ceremony of the 2017 Summer Universiade in Taipei, Taiwan with a solo violin performance.[5]

Awards

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Recordings

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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)[17]
  • Sarasate Violin Pieces (Chimei Museum: S000887011011088)[18]
  • Reverie: Chopin, Ernst, Mozart, Tartini, Tchaikovsky, Wieniawski with Rohan De Silva, piano (Universal Music Taiwan / Deutsche Grammophon: UCCG-1774)[19]

References

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  1. ^ M.-P. and J.-M. Lambert. Concours Musical International Reine Elisabeth de Belgique, 2012
  2. ^ "Yu-Chien Tseng of Curtis Institute top winner at Tchaikovsky Competition," Philadelphia Inquirer, July 2, 2015
  3. ^ "Tseng takes yet another Guarneri violin to Europe," Taipei Times, July 9, 2012
  4. ^ "Singapore International Violin Competition: Winner Tseng Yu-Chien was once thought to be tone-deaf," Straits Times, January 22, 2015
  5. ^ Strong, Matthew (19 August 2017). "Taipei 2017 Summer Universiade opens with dazzling spectacle and political strife". Taiwan News. Taiwan News. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  6. ^ Prize winners since 1983 | Menuhin Competition
  7. ^ 2009 contest. Winners - navarra.es
  8. ^ 2008 – today | Premio Paganini Competition
  9. ^ Tseng takes yet another Guarneri violin to Europe
  10. ^ 2011 International Tchaikovsky Competition Results
  11. ^ Taiwanese violinist tops Isang Yun Competition
  12. ^ "Yu-Chien Tseng - Queen Elisabeth Competition". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2015-06-26.
  13. ^ Singapore International Violin Competition
  14. ^ "Yu-Chien Tseng wins the Singapore International Violin Competition". Archived from the original on 2015-06-29. Retrieved 2015-06-27.
  15. ^ Results of the XV International Tchaikovsky Competition in the Violin category | The XV International Tchaikovsky Competition
  16. ^ Chung, Jake (11 July 2015). "'China Taipei' appellation for violinist plucks protest". Taipei Times. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
  17. ^ French Violin Sonatas | Outhere Music
  18. ^ Sarasate Violin Pieces | CHIMEI MUSEUM
  19. ^ "Reverie on Deutsche Grammophon". amazon.com.
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