Annabelle Chan is a high-school student living in Simsbury, CT, and has been studying the cello with Katie Kennedy since 2013. When starting private lessons, Annabelle furthermore attended the Hartt School Community Division for both cello group lessons, orchestra, and later on, chamber music. During the summers, she spent her time attending multiple chamber music intensive programs including the Music Adventure in Italy in 2022 and the Walnut Hill String Quartet Intensive in 2024.
Annabelle, now a student at Loomis Chaffee, continues orchestra at the Hartt School as a cellist of the Connecticut Youth Symphony while still playing in the Loomis Chaffee orchestra and chamber music program. Through Loomis, Annabelle is able to participate in the Northern Region High School Festival every year, and she actively engages as the student leader of the Loomis Music Mentoring Program where students mentor young musicians of the local Windsor community every week. Besides being a student leader of the mentoring program, Annabelle also carries the position of one of the Music Leaders on campus where she is in charge of running music events and providing a helping hand during orchestra. Later on in high school and in her musical career, Annabelle became the first-place winner of the Nutmeg Symphony Concerto Competition in 2024.
An additional interest of Annabelle includes not only just playing classical music, but she greatly enjoys playing pop and traditional music from other cultures as well. From her travels, Annabelle returns home with new inspirations and perspectives, diversifying her range of music and connecting her with different pieces from around the world. At home, Annabelle additionally finds enjoyment in collaborating with her 9-year-old brother who plays the piano. Together, they perform solos at local churches and work together on holiday tunes for family gatherings. At present, Annabelle hopes to continue her music journey throughout high school and find new opportunities to improve her playing skills.
Watch Annabelle Chan perform J.C. Bach Concerto in C Minor Mvt. 3 by Johann Christian Bach on the cello for the 2025 Classical Music Competition as part of the Charleston International Music Competition.