Ray Chen

Ray Chen (b. 6 March 1989) is an Australian violinist.

Chen began learning violin at the age of 4. Within 5 years he completed all 10 levels of the Suzuki Music Education in Queensland, Australia. Chen was invited to play solo with the Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra at the young age of 8. He was also invited to perform at the opening celebration concert of the Nagano Winter Olympics in Japan in 1998.

Ray Chen was chosen as Australia´s 4MBS´s Young Space Musician of the Year in 1999. He was awarded the Australian Music Examinations Board’s Sydney May Memorial Scholarship for being the youngest and most talented musician. Chen was awarded his Licentiate Diploma of Music with distinction by the Australian Music Examinations Board at age 11. Aged 13, he won first prize in the Australian Youth Concerto Competition, and in 2005 won first prize in the 2005 Australia National Kendall Violin Competition. [ [http://www.kendallviolin.org.au/finalists/winners.htm Australia National Kendall Violin Competition] ] Professor Goetz Richter, chair of the String Unit at Sydney Conservatorium of Music has described Ray as "one of the most talented and accomplished young violinists to have emerged from Australia." [ [http://www.kendallviolin.org.au/ The Kendall National Violin Competition for young Australian violinists ] ]

In April 2008 Chen won the senior division first prize of the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists Cardiff, Wales. It is commonly known as the Menuhin Competition, and is the world's leading international competition for young violinists. [ [http://www.menuhincompetition.org/SENIOR-PRIZE-WINNERS.html Menuhin Competition] ] He won third prize in the Junior Section of the same competition held in London in 2004.

In the summers of 2006 and 2007, Chen attended Encore School for Strings, studying under David Cerone at the Cleveland Institute of Music. In 2008 he will be attending The Aspen Music Festival on a full tuition fellowship to study with Cho-Liang Lin (Juilliard) and Paul Kantor (Cleveland Institute of Music).

Chen has given many public performances internationally and has taken master classes with notable artists including Midori Gotō, Cho-Liang Lin, Maxim Vengerov, Antje Weithaas, and Rudolf Koelman. At the end of June 2008 he made his Russian debut playing the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the Marinsky (Kirov) Orchestra in St Petersburg under the baton of famous violinist, Maxim Vengerov.

His violin teachers have included Kerry Smith (Queensland Conservatory) and Professor Peter Zhang (Sydney Conservatory). Currently Chen studies violin at the Curtis Institute of Music under Aaron Rosand in Philadelphia.

Notes

References

* [http://www.menuhincompetition.org International Yehudi Menuhin Competition]
* [http://www.kendallviolin.org.au/finalists/winners.htm Kendall Violin Competition]
* [http://www.michaelhillinternationalviolincompetition.com/index.php/pi_pageid/51#Ray_Chen Michael Hill International Violin Competition]
* [http://www.musolife.com/young-australian-lands-top-prize-at-menuhin-competition.html Young Australian lands top prize at Menuhin competition]