Violin
Violinist Junshi Yang commands a compelling presence on stages across North America and Asia, distinguished by his exceptional performances as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral leader. He has collaborated with a distinguished roster of conductors and artists, including Charles Dutoit, Yan Pascal Tortelier, Nikolaj Znaider, David Effron, Thomas Wilkins, Arthur Fagen, Andrés Cárdenas, Cho-Liang Lin, Gary Levinson, Yuriy Becker, Joan Kwuon, Yale Weiss, Michael Klotz, Franklin Cohen, Christopher Adkins, Florence Sitruk, Tan Dun, Yang Yang, Zhang Yi, and Shen Wenyu. Junshi Yang’s solo performances have taken place at some of the world’s prestigious halls, including Carnegie Hall in New York, City Theater in San Jose, Suntory Hall in Japan, and Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing. As the first violinist of the Indiana String Quartet, his series of tour concerts in the Midwest United States in 2023-2024 also received high praise. After moving to Atlanta in 2024, Junshi was invited to perform solo and chamber music concerts at institutions such as Emory University, Georgia State University, and the University of North Georgia.
Junshi has received recognition and praise from prestigious Maestros, such as the legendary cellist Lynn Harrell, who described his performance as “a wonderful and faithful rendition of the score… impressive and highly anticipated.” Koichiro Harada, founder of the Tokyo String Quartet and judge at the Wieniawski International Violin Competition and Queen Elisabeth Competition, praised Junshi’s playing as having “rich tone and moving musicality.” The legendary violin pedagogue Donald Weilerstein wrote to him, “your playing is very musical and expressive.” The renowned violinist Mauricio Fuks described his music as “deeply emotional and passionate… a rare performer with a big heart.” Junshi has also received guidance and accolades from Menahem Pressler, Elmar Oliveira, Daniel Heifetz, Li-Kuo Chang, Catherine Cho, Luba Edlina-Dubinsky, Alexander Kerr, Gary Levinson, Yuriy Bekker, the Pacifica Quartet, Frank Ge-Fang Yang, and Xie Nan.
Mr. Yang has held many esteemed positions, including Violin Faculty at the Montecito International Music Festival (where he previously served as Residency Artist), Fellowship at the Heifetz International Music Institute, Concertmaster and principal at the Miami International Music Festival, Soloist at the San Jose City Council, Special Guest Violinist at the Indiana University Chancellor’s Installation Ceremony, Guest Violinist at the Beijing International Chamber Music Festival, Quartet first violin for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Concert Series, Acting Assistant Concertmaster of the Oriental Symphony Orchestra, Founding Member of the Norm Trio, and Co-founder and Artistic Director of the Capital Philharmonic Orchestra at Beijing. Driven by a profound curiosity and passion for both classical and contemporary repertoire, Junshi has commissioned or premiered over twenty new works as a soloist and chamber musician. Concurrently, Junshi is also an accomplished cross-genre musician, having performed, edited, and produced music for the film industry, television and game productions, and celebrity concerts.
Despite his busy performance schedule, Junshi Yang is dedicated to violin pedagogy and constantly strives for excellence. Students he has successfully mentored have advanced to prominent competitions, such as the quarterfinals of the Indianapolis International Violin Competition, the semifinals of the Mozart International Violin Competition in Salzburg, and finals of Schoenfeld International String Competition; and have been accepted by top institutions including Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, The Glenn Gould School at The Royal Conservatory of Music, Peabody Institute, Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln, Michigan State University College of Music, Central Conservatory of Music Beijing, Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore, and China Conservatory of Music.
Born in Jinan, China, Junshi Yang began his violin studies at age six, later gaining admission to the middle school affiliated with the Central Conservatory of Music. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, studying with the esteemed violinist Vera Tsu Weiling, Chair of the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition. Junshi then pursued his Doctor of Music degree at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with a Full Scholarship and Artistic Excellence Award, under the tutelage of distinguished violinist Professor Mark Kaplan. In 2017, he assumed teaching, organizational, and performance roles as an employee of the Jacobs School of Music. Junshi Yang joined the University of North Georgia in 2025 as violin faculty.
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