Weiyin Chen

Biography

In a time of promising young virtuosos from all over the world, the Taiwanese-American pianist Weiyin Chen stands out not just for her dazzling technique, but above all for the sheer musicality and maturity of her playing, qualities rare in an artist of her young years. Her gift for getting to the musical “heart” of the scores she plays has drawn the attention and praise of such master musicians as the renowned conductor-pianist Leon Fleisher and pianists Richard Goode and Claude Frank, all of whom she studied with extensively.

Ms. Chen has performed as soloist with most of the major orchestras in Asia, including the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra—with whom she made her debut under Maestro Edo de Waart—and the China National Symphony Orchestra. This season, she is heard in a three-part series of concerts at New York’s SubCulture venue. In January, she collaborated with the Miró Quartet to perform the Piano Quartet and Quintet of Brahms. The series will close with a solo piano recital in June, featuring the world premiere of American composer Marc Neikrug’s work Sun Moon Lake.  In addition to her appearances at SubCulture, Ms. Chen will be presented in the Netherlands with the Camerata RCO, members of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, following their glowing review by the New York Times senior music critic, Anthony Tommasini:

“The featured artist was the appealing young Taiwanese-American pianist Weiyin Chen, a thoughtful, lyrical and accomplished artist, who performed works by Mozart and Mendelssohn with Camerata RCO, an ensemble whose members are players in the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam…   The hallmarks of Ms. Chen’s performance were the singing quality of her sound and her attentiveness to inner voices and harmonic shadings… I was captivated by the breadth and warmth of the Mozart playing, and the easy interplay between Ms. Chen and the ensemble.”

—    Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times, September 15, 2014

Ms. Chen’s recent CD, Diary in G, which includes Schubert’s Sonata No. 18 in G major and the Piano Sonata No. 2 in G minor by Robert Schumann on the Azica label, received acclaim from Fanfare longtime critic, Jerry Dubins, who wrote:  “Weiyin Chen is up against some very formidable competitors in the Schubert Sonata, not the least among which are Alfred Brendel, Wilhelm Kempff, Radu Lupu, András Schiff…Chen emerges as a deeply probing player who finds the core of this music from the very first bar and never, for even a moment, loses concentration…this is one of the most breathtaking performances of this Sonata I’ve ever heard. The pianist makes every single note speak and count, with the result that time is stilled from beginning to end…I can honestly say that no other performance and recording of this Sonata I’ve heard has won me over as this one has.”