BIOGRAPHY
Sought-after violinist and teacher Celia Zhang hails from Louisville, KY. She began her musical studies at age 5. After winning many of her local music competitions, she then joined the Preparatory Department of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, studying with Kurt Sassmannshaus and serving actively as concertmaster and soloist of the Starling Chamber Orchestra. After making her solo debut with the Louisville Youth Orchestra at age 9 and professional solo debut with the Louisville Orchestra at age 14, she later went on to complete her Bachelor's Degree in Violin Performance from the Juilliard School in 2014 and her Master's Degree from the Yale School of Music in 2016.
Throughout her career, Celia actively participated in many music festivals, including the Aspen Music Festival and School, the Spoleto Festival, Music Academy of the West, and others. Some of her highlight performances have taken place in iconic venues such as Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center, and Beijing Concert Hall. She has performed in concerts throughout the United States, Asia and Europe, and given concerts with the Jacksonville Symphony, New Haven Symphony, Hartford Symphony, the New World Symphony and others, as well has having been selected as a Finalist with the latter group.
In addition to performing, Celia was an active member of the Music In Schools Initiative - a program which enables music students at the Yale School of Music to assist teachers in the New Haven Public School music classrooms. Other responsibilities included managing and rehearsing student ensembles through their adjacent All-City Honors Ensemble for selected students. She has also served as a Teaching Artist in MISI's summer program, the Morse Summer Music Academy.
After relocating to Boston in 2017, she joined the faculty of several notable educational programs, including the violin faculty of the Dexter Southfield School, the Josiah Quincy Orchestra Program (JQOP) and the Brookline Music School. JQOP named Celia the Director of their Villa-Lobos Orchestra (2018), and of their Newbold Orchestra (2019). She was also nominated as a Music Educators/Teaching Artist (META) Fellowship, run by the Mass Cultural Council. Her own private teaching studio opened in Newton, MA in the spring of 2018, and is already broaching maximal capacity. Her students have placed #1 in the state at the Royal Academy of Music Examinations, won first prize in the Crescendo International Music Competition, have been invited to perform solo at Carnegie Hall, accepted into BUTI Tanglewood, and seated as front stand leaders in the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras and New England Conservatory Youth Orchestras.
In addition to her passion for teaching, Celia is also a frequent chamber and solo recitalist in the Boston area, and a founding member of the Tarlino Duo, and Duo Risu. Starting in January 2022, Celia Zhang Violin has expanded to a larger location and become Village Youth Conservatory, located just half a mile down the road. Please see the Upcoming Events and Contact tabs for questions and upcoming samples of her work.