Ching-Yun Hu is the silver medalist (no first prize awarded) at the 2008 Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, where she was also awarded the Audience Favorite Prize. Following the victory at the competition, she was immediately engaged by the Israel Philharmonic on short notice to step in for world-renowned pianist Helene Grimaud to perform Beethoven 4th Piano Concerto with the Israel Philharmonic, while giving a seven city recital tour in Israel. Her performances of the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 and Prokofiev Concerto No. 3 with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in the finale of the competition were broadcast live by the international classical music channel "Mezzo". The success of this award brought her to new heights in the classical music world. Upcoming engagements at the Wigmore Hall in London, Gewanthaus in Leipzig, Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center, Opera House in Tel Aviv; at the Ruhr Festival in Germany and Chopin Festival in Duszniki – Dzroj, Poland; with the Israel Chamber Orchestra, Lodz Orchestra, Taipei Philharmonic, and a recital tour of UK, among others.
In previous seasons, Ms. Hu's concert appearances had taken her to such prestigious venues such as the Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York, Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Salle Cortot in Paris, Aspen Music Festival, Chopin International Festival in Poland, National Chiang Kai-Shek Performance Hall (Taipei), Osaka Hall, and in various other concert halls in Spain, Portugal, Africa, UK and the U.S. Ms. Hu made her solo debut at age 13 with the Poland Capella Cracoriensis Chamber Orchestra on tour in Japan and Taiwan, and won the Silver Medal at the Taipei International Piano Competition at age 16. Her other competition accolades include First Prizes at the World Piano Competition in Cincinnati, the Olga Koussevitzky International Piano Competition, California International Piano Competition, and the Seiler International Piano Competition. In addition, she has appeared in a sold out concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra as the soloist in the Grieg Piano Concerto. Ms. Hu has also had appearances with the Aspen Concert Orchestra, New York Sinfonietta, Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, World Festival Orchestra, Grande Rapide Orchestra, and Viana do Castelo Festival Orchestra, among others. Her performances have been aired by the WQXR Robert Sherman Young Artists Showcase, WRTI Philadelphia Orchestra Broadcast Concert Series, and the Polish National Radio and Television Stations. In her native country of Taiwan, she has been honored with awards and career sponsorships from the National Culture and Education Committees, National Concert Halls, and the Chi-Mei Music and Art Foundation.
Ms. Hu received both her Bachelor and Master of Music Degrees from The Juilliard School, studying piano performing with Herbert Stessin and Oxana Yablonskaya, chamber music with Timothy Eddy, Joseph Kalichstein, and Seymour Lipkin. In addition, she has worked in master classes with Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, and Murray Perahia. Ms. Hu has been coached privately by Seymour Bernstein. Presently, she continues to work with Sergei Babayan at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
