REVIEWS

“Tao Lin demonstrated his mastery with inspired and sparkling keyboard work.” —South Florida Sun-Sentinel

“A performance of such subtle sensitivity that few pianists nowadays could fathom, much less muster . . . a creative interpretation carried out with bravura technique and a prismatic sense of keyboard color.” —Coral Gables Gazette

“That the Chinese pianist Tao Lin delivered some of the most virtuoso piano playing heard at Arendal City Hall in a long, long time, if ever, was the verdict of the experts after the concert.” —Agderposten, Norway

“Tao Lin took a recital program of mostly familiar works and turned them into adventures for the ears . . . [Lin] earned his first of two standing ovations for his breathtaking performance of [Chopin‘s] Sonata in b minor . . . What Lin did close with was an awe-inspiring performance of Mily Balakirev’s finger-twisting, knuckle-busting Islamey . . . Haydn’s C major Piano Sonata, Hob. XVI:50 was more interesting . . . breathing life into a piece that too many pianists make stiff and sterile." — Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

BIOGRAPHY

Hailed by critics for his “keen musical intelligence and excellent facility” (Miami Herald) and his “opulent and romantic tone” (Fanfare), Shanghai native and Florida resident TAO LIN (www.taolin.net) has been a prize-winner at the Palm Beach International Invitational Competition, the International Piano e-Competition, the William Kapell International Piano Competition and the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition. He has performed at the Kennedy Center, National Gallery, 92nd Street Y, Rockefeller University, Chautauqua Institute, Minnesota Orchestra Hall, Izumi Hall (Osaka, Japan), and Norway’s Edvard Grieg Museum

Born into a musical family in Shanghai, he began piano lessons at the age of four, first with his mother and later his father, both on faculty at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. The following year saw his first public performance and at the age of eight, he gained entrance to the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. As a teenager, he performed in the Chinese premiere of Bartok’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion, a major musical event at the time. After moving to the United States, Mr. Lin continued his active concert activities.

As a soloist, he has performed with Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony, Miami Chamber Orchestra, Knoxville Civic Orchestra amongst others. As a recitalist, he has performed at such prestigious venues as the Kennedy Center, National Gallery of Art, 92nd Street Y, Rockefeller University, Chautauqua Institute, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, Minnesota Orchestra Hall, Izumi Hall (Osaka, Japan), and Edvard Grieg Museum in Norway.

A regular guest artist at numerous music festivals, Mr. Lin has performed at the Music Festival of the Hamptons, Mainly Mozart Festival (Miami), Music Mountain Chamber Music Festival, Arts Rolla Festival, Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Festival Miami.

Mr. Lin has concertized throughout the United States as a founding member of the Berlin Piano Quartet and the Brahms Piano Quartet (with members of the St. Petersburg String Quartet). He has also appeared in concerts with the Aspen String Trio, Miami, Bergonzi and St. Petersburg String Quartets.

With Argentinian violinist Tomás Cotik, Mr. Lin has recorded Schubert's complete music for piano and violin for Centaur Records. These recordings have numerous rave reviews in the international press, including one in Fanfare Magazine that compared their CD favorably with the classic recording by Rachmaninoff and Kreisler. On the strength of the success of this recording, the duo received a long-term recording contract with Centaur Records to record all 17 Sonatas for Piano and Violin by Mozart. The duo has already completed the final CD of the Schubert project, and meanwhile has released a much-lauded Piazzolla CD on the Naxos label.

Very much in demand as a pedagogue as well, Mr. Lin has given master classes and lectures at universities and conservatories in the United States, Norway, and China. He received the award for “Outstanding International Pedagogue” from Shanghai Normal University School of Music. He is currently an artist faculty member at the Bowdoin International Music Festival and is a visiting professor at Shanghai Normal University Music College.

“A performance of such subtle sensitivity that few pianists nowadays could fathom, much less muster . . . a creative interpretation carried out with bravura technique and a prismatic sense of keyboard color. ”

— Coral Gables Gazette