Tony Yan-Tong Chen
Biography Tony Yan-Tong Chen
Tony Yan Tong Chen
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, 21-year-old Tony Yan Tong Chen began studying piano with his mother at the age of five. After early regional competition success and distinguished examination results from ABRSM and Trinity College music examinations, he pursued an undergraduate degree in Classical Piano Performance at the Eastman School of Music (University of Rochester, New York) under Prof. Alan Chow as a recipient of a Martha Stone Seholarship.
His academic accomplishments include CIE Top Achiever Award for the highest mark in New Zealand for AS and A Level Music, NZQA Scholarships in Music and English Literature, and the 2019 fall Dean’s list at Eastman. He is a graduate of Macleans College and the University of Auckland Young Scholars Program. His comprehensive skill set also includes formal training and performance experience on the violin, trumpet, french horn and harpsichord.
Since winning the 2019 Wallace National Piano Competition, Tony has forged a reputation as an exciting and versatile emerging pianist performing in prominent venues in Switzerland, Spain and Canada where he studied in Blonay, Valencia and Orford respectively. He was privileged to receive masterclass instruction from distinguished artists including Jerome Lowenthal, Alexander Kobrin, Douglas Humpherys, Boris Slutsky, Pavel Nercessian, Edith Fischer, Juan Lago, Pierre Reach, Pascal Nemirovski, John Perry, Anton Nel, Jean Saulnier, Henry Wong Doe, Stephen De Pledge and others.
Tony has benefitted from the support of Prof. JC Richards, Wallace Arts Trust, Dame Malvina Major Foundation, and Waikanae Society Music. He appears as concerto soloist with the Bach Musica Orchestra, the Nelson Symphony, and as a Young Artist of the Wakatipu and Akaroa Music Festivals.
“Here was Liszt playing of a positively blazing conviction and intensity … It is rare to encounter such a high-energy performance of this massive work that sails so close to the edge but still retains integrity.” — WNPC Adjudicator Charles Owen
