Tianwa Yang

Winner of the prestigious OPUS KLASSIK Instrumentalist of the Year (Violin) in 2022 for her Naxos recording of Prokofiev’s two Violin Concertos and in 2015 for her Naxos recording Ysaÿe’s six Sonatas for Solo Violin, the Best Up-and-Coming Artist 2014 and the Annual Prize of the German Record Critics 2014 for her Naxos recordings of the Mendelssohn Violin Concertos and Complete Music for Violin by Sarasate, Tianwa Yang is referred to as “an unquestioned master of the violin” by American Record Guide who “rises above her competition” (Fanfare). Heralded by the Detroit News as “the most important violinist to come on the scene in many a year,” she performs with such major orchestras as the Detroit, Seattle, Baltimore, Nashville, Sydney, Kansas City, Virginia, Pacific, Vancouver, Toledo, SWR-Baden Baden-Freiburg, WDR-Cologne, MDR-Leipzig, HR Radio Frankfurt, Malmö, Singapore and New Zealand Symphonies; the London, Dresden, Helsinki, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Buffalo, BBC, Deutsche Radio, Erfurt, Warsaw and Royal Liverpool Philharmonics; the Guerzenish Orchester - Cologne, Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Orchestre National d'Île de France, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg and Macau Orchestra. International concert and recital engagements take her to the Ravinia, Virginia Arts, Schwetzinger, Rheingau Music, Heidelberger Frühling, and Lucerne Festivals, London’s Wigmore Hall, Paris’ Salle Pleyel, New York’s Rose Theater, Lincoln Center, and Leipzig’s Gewandhaus. She has also given live concert broadcasts from the Schwetzingen Festival, broadcast by the SWR Stuttgart; from the Berlin Philharmonic Hall, broadcast by Deutschlandradio; from the Montpellier Festival, broadcast by Radio France; and from Alten Oper broadcast by HR RadioFrankfurt.

As a critically acclaimed recording artist for Naxos, Yang’ most recent releases include Prokofiev’s Violin Concertos no. 1 and no. 2 with ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra and Jun Märkl, Brahms’ Violin Concerto and Double Concerto with DSO Berlin, Antoni Witt and cellist, Gabriel Schwabe; and two highly acclaimed volumes of the Complete Music for Violin and Orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm. These were preceded by Saint- Saëns’ Works for Violin and Orchestra; Stravinksy’s The Soldier’s Tale as a highly acclaimed complete version; and Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole with Manén’s Concierto Espanol with the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra and Darrell Ang. Considered the world’s best interpreter of the music of Sarasate since Heifetz, her complete music for Violin and Orchestra and for Violin and Piano by Sarasate are now released as two complete box sets by Naxos. A Best of Tianwa Yang album became an industry best seller. This was preceded by the Violin Concertos by Castelnuovo-Tedesco and the complete Solo Sonatas by Eugene Ysaye which immediately won several awards. Her Mendelssohn Violin Concertos album earned her the title “one of the best new violinists of the new century” by Musicweb-International. Of the previously released 8 single album recordings of Pablo de Sarasate’s complete works for violin, David Hurwitz of Classics Today calls Yang a “sensationally talented violinist,” while All Things Strings speaks of her “stunning effortless virtuosity” and “uncanny affinity for Spanish music”. She has also recorded Piazzolla’s Las 4 Estaciones Porteñas with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and the Vivaldi/Piazzolla Eight Seasons performed with her own ensemble.

Raised in the Chinese capital city of Beijing, Yang began studying violin at the age of four. Demonstrating unquestionable ability, she won six competitions as a young child. At the age of ten she was accepted to study at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing as a student of Lin Yaoji. Within one year, Hong Kong media described the young artist as “A Pride of China.” Yang recorded the 24 Paganini Caprices at the age of 13, making her the youngest artist to release the works. In 2003 Yang was awarded a scholarship by the German Academic Exchange Service to study chamber music in Germany, marking the beginning of her European career. 

Yang has won several awards during her career including the Volkswagen Foundation prize “Star of Tomorrow” by Seiji Ozawa and the 2006 “Prix Montblanc”. She is the recipient of two much coveted OPUS KLASSIK Awards and she has received multiple accolades, awards, prizes and top album placings for her extensive discography.

She is Professor of Violin at the University of the Arts, Bern, Switzerland, Professor at the Hochschule für Musik, Würzburg. She is grateful to Lin Yaoji, Jörg-Wolfgang Jahn and Anner Bylsma for the musical insight and support they have offered throughout her career. She performs on a Guarneri del Gesu (1730) on kind loan from the Rin Collection in Singapore.