Astrid Martig
Violin
Astrid Martig is a former member of the Kiel Opera Orchestra, Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, and the North German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, among others. She studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hannover (Germany). She was awarded a prize from the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra and a scholarship from the Marie-Luise Imbusch Foundation, and held solo recitals at the Laeisz Music Hall in Hamburg in 2004 and at the Festival International de Musique Symphonique d'El Jem in 2007.
Fiona Zheng
Violin
Fiona Zheng started ear training at age 3 and began learning the violin from her father at age 5. She has won many first prizes in China for her violin performance. Having attended New York’s Fei Tian College on a full scholarship, she has performed eight seasons as a member of Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra, including the last five seasons as a soloist at Carnegie Hall.
Kaspar-Laurenz Martig
Trumpet
Former principal trumpet of the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, the Essen Opera, and for seven years the North German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Kaspar-Laurenz Martig has played in numerous recordings for CD and otherwise. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and the Hochschule fuer Musik und Theater in Hamburg. He was the first prize winner of the German national competition “Jugend musiziert” (trumpet & piano category) in 1995 and 1997, of the Concertino Praga in 1998, of the Elise Meyer Competition in Hamburg in 2002, and of the Lions Club (Germany) National Music Competition in 2005.
Aleksander Velichko
Bassoon
Recognized for his extraordinary musicality and superb technique, Aleksander Velichko is the former principal bassoon of the Moscow State Symphony. He has also held the assistant principal position in Russia’s other most prominent orchestras, including the Symphony Orchestra of Russia, the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, and the National Philharmonic of Russia. He earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and postgraduate (equivalent to a U.S. doctorate) degrees in bassoon performance at the prestigious Gnessin Russian Academy of Music in Moscow, and performed as a soloist with the Moscow Virtuosi chamber orchestra.
Hung-Chieh Yang
Trombone
A distinguished trombonist from Taiwan, Hung-Chieh Yang advanced his study in trombone solo and chamber music at one of the most prestigious music institutions in Europe, Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln in Wuppertal, Germany, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. In Europe, he performed with Kölner Symphoniker, Bayer Philharmonker, and Orchesterakademie an der Immanuelskirche. Since joining Shen Yun Performing Arts as Principal Trombone in 2016, Yang has performed in over 300 shows in some of the world’s top venues, such as Kennedy Center in Washington, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto, Teatro degli Arcimboldi in Milan, the historic Burgtheater in Vienna, and many others.
Pavlo Baishev
Bass Trombone
A distinguished and experienced player, Pavlo Baishev is the former assistant principal trombone of the National Opera of Ukraine, a position he held for 16 years. He also performed with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, Kyiv Classic Orchestra, Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Choir, as well as the Kyiv Virtuosi chamber orchestra. Winner of the Grand Prix of the International Competition of Young Performers (Kyiv, 2002), and second place winner of the Ukrainian National Competition for Brass and Percussion (2004), he studied at the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine, where he earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and postgraduate (equivalent to a U.S. doctorate) degrees.
Eric Robins
Trumpet
Eric Robins holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master’s degree from New England Conservatory. He has performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, among others, and is former principal trumpet of the Daegu Symphony Orchestra (Korea). His fellowships include the Mabel Louise Riley Scholarship (New England Conservatory), National Orchestral Institute, Round Top International Music Festival, and Bar Harbor Brass.
Vladimir Zemtsov
Trumpet
Vladimir Zemtsov’s glowing, powerful tone has led his brass section across Europe in the performance of classics such as Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, and many others while serving as principal trumpet of the Russian State Ballet of Siberia. He previously held positions with orchestras in Moscow and other cities. He earned a bachelor’s degree in trumpet performance at Russia’s Krasnoyarsk State Academy of Music and Theatre.
Chia-Jung Lee
Flute
Winner of University of Texas Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition, second prize winner of the National Young Artist Competition at Mid-South Flute Festival, and first prize winner of the Kaohsiung City Music Competition (Taiwan), Chia-Jung Lee was a recipient of the Certificate of Recognition of Outstanding Doctoral Recital from the University of Texas Butler School of Music. She holds a doctoral degree in flute performance from the University of Texas at Austin, a master’s degree from Boston University, and a bachelor’s degree from Sun Yat-Sen University (Taiwan).
Yevgeniy Reznik
Clarinet
Yevgeniy Reznik holds a doctorate in clarinet performance from the University of Texas at Austin, where he was recognized with an Outstanding Doctoral Recital. He won the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Young Artist Woodwind Division Competition, State Competition, and Collegiate Competition. He attended as a fellow the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival – Yale School of Music, and Y. Mravinsky International Music Festival in Saint Petersburg, Russia. He ranked as top clarinetist and alternate to overall winner in the 2005 MTNA Young Artist Woodwind Division Competition in the state of Michigan. A native of Ukraine, he came to the United States at age 17 to attend Interlochen Arts Academy on a full scholarship.
Alistair Crawford
Trombone
Alistair Crawford has performed with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic, and the Melbourne Opera Orchestra, among others. He earned a bachelor of music with honors at the University of Melbourne and a graduate diploma of professional music practice at the University of Tasmania. When studying at the University of Melbourne, he received the Lady Turner Award for the most promising musician, and pursued later studies at the Australian National Academy of Music.
Linda Wang
Erhu
Linda Wang became a professional erhu player at the age of 15. Raised in a musical family, she started learning both the erhu and violin at age 7, and has studied under several renowned erhuists. She attended San Francisco High School of the Arts in California before pursuing advanced studies at Fei Tian Academy of the Arts and Fei Tian College in New York.
I-Chen Huang
Cello
A graduate of L’École Normale de Musique de Paris, I-Chen Huang holds a bachelor’s degree in cello performance and a master’s degree in cello education, cello performance, and chamber music. She continued her studies at the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Paris, where she received Diplôme Supérieur in music education in 2010. She won second prize at the UFAM International Competition for chamber music in 2007, second place in the Kaohsiung City Piano Competition (Taiwan), and first place in the Taiwan National Music Composition Competition.
