Jie Yuan

Piano, 2018 Young Artist Award Jurist

Chinese pianist Jie Yuan, is regarded as one of the most successful young pianists in China. He has been listed as “Top Ten Chinese Pianists” by China Central Television and was praised by The New York Times, noting "his perfect technical and musicality no doubt make him a leader in this generation of pianists.” He has won prizes in the Cliburn, Busoni, Casagrande, Bechstein, Shanghai, Hamamatsu, Crescendo, Seattle and Hong Kong international piano competitions. He has given concerts throughout five continents in over 40 countries and regions, nearly 500 cities. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Vienna Wiener Musikverein, the National Centre for the Performing Arts in China, has also worked with the New York Philharmonic, Dresden Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, China National Symphony Orchestra, and nearly a hundred other orchestras.

Jie is a recipient of the prestigious Artist Diploma from The Juilliard School and has been appointed as the National Arts Youth Ambassador of China by China State Council. He presently holds positions in three major conservatories in China: the Chair of Piano Department at Harbin Conservatory of Music, the Vice President and Chair of Piano Department at JiLin University of Arts, as well as the Vice President at Hangzhou Liangzhu International Arts Academy. He is also the artistic director of four international festivals: Hangzhou Festival, Harbin Festival, Lanzhou Festival and China International Piano Festival. He is also the Image Ambassador of Hong Kong Piano Music Society, Image Ambassador of China - South Korea International Arts Festival, and Image Ambassador of Beijing University Love Foundation.

For the 2017-2018 season, Jie has scheduled 128 concerts throughout 12 countries and 82 cities. In addition to solo recitals and concerts in cooperation with 20-plus orchestras worldwide, he was invited by the French government to participate in the national concert of the 200-year anniversary for the Battle of Waterloo; by the Paris UNESCO to participate in major concerts for World Poetry Day; by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China to perform in the 2016 “China National Day” opening ceremony; and by The Juilliard School of Music to record the new App series “Juilliard Open Studios” - the only Alumni musician in this series. Jie also performed in the Gala Concert for the Association of South East Asian Nations, and the Fourth Cultural Expo opening ceremony. In the documentary, "Insight to China - the Key to Success," made by the CCTV English Channel, Jie Yuan, Yundi Li, and Lang Lang were featured with interviews regarding their stories to success. Jie was also featured in a TV special, “Jie Yuan – Conquering the American Audience with Piano,” by CCTV Chinese International Channel. Jie was featured in a special documentary, "The Piano Poet - Yuan Jie," by the Changchun TV. Recently, the show “Music and Life” by CCTV filmed an exclusive interview with Jie Yuan, making him the youngest musician interviewed on the show in its 20-year history. As the youngest jurist, Jie served as chief judge and led a two-month live TV show, "China Central Television Piano and Violin Competition Show.” In addition, Jie has served as a jurist for many international competitions, including Animato in Paris, Seoul, Macau, Taiwan, Portuguese, Hong Kong International Piano Competition and many others.

Jie Yuan was born in Changchun, China, and has received education from Texas Christian University, The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music and Lake Como International Piano Academy. His teachers include LI Xiao, Tamas Ungar, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Solomon Mikowsky and William Nabore.