Sun-Young Shin

Violin, Viola

Sun-Young Shin

SAA Member

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Acclaimed as ’sensitive and sensible’, Dr. Sun-Young Gemma Shin is an internationally sought-after performer on both baroque and modern violin as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestra leader. Dr. Shin is the Concertmaster of the Chamber Orchestra of Sarasota and Associate Concertmaster of the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra, and a former Fellow and Concertmaster of the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra in Alabama.

Winner of numerous competitions, Dr. Shin is a frequent guest artist and adjudicator. She has given masterclasses at workshops and summer festivals throughout the United States and adjudicated at reputable competitions including Blount Slawson Young Artist Competition.

As a versatile musician, Dr. Shin is equally well-versed in historically-informed performance practice as she is in new music by living composers. Her notable presentations include the College Music Society’s National Conference in San Antonio, TX (2017) where she premiered Dr. Sebastian Birch’s “Nice, 14 Juillet 2016″ for solo violin in San Antonio, TX (2017) and received a standing ovation. She also had the opportunity to present her doctoral thesis “Solo Violin Works by Augusta Read Thomas” at the 2015 College of Music Society conference in Lansing, MI (2015).

As a baroque violinist, Sun-Young served as concertmaster for the Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana (B. A. C. H.), collaborated with renowned harpsichordist Charlotte Mattax-Moersch, Martha Stiehl, and performed throughout the United States. Upon the fundamental and stylistic baroque training with Charlotte Mattax-Moersch during her DMA studies, her baroque violin technique had strong influences from Elizabeth Blumenstock, Robert Mealy, Julie Andrijeski, Nancy Wilson, and Stanley Ritchie. She has performed at the American Bach Soloist, Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute, Illinois Bach Festival, and Marie Morgan Bach Festival.      

Shin has collaborated with esteemed artists such as the Grammy Award-winning Pacifica Quartet, St. Petersburg Quartet, Martha Graham Dance Company, John Corigliano, and played with Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, Euro-Asian Orchestra, and performed at major concert venues such as the Seoul Arts Center, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Shanghai Oriental Art Center, Getty Center in Los Angeles, Symphony Center in Chicago, and Carnegie Hall, among others. 

​A noted pedagogue and a dedicated educator, Dr. Shin maintains a successful private studio for both violin and viola. Her award-winning students have received admissions to prestigious music schools such as DePaul University, Oberlin College, the University of Texas at Austin, and Northwestern University, and hold positions in professional orchestras around the United States. She has taught at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp (MI), Illinois Summer Youth Music, and Illinois Chamber Music Symposium, and her collegiate teaching positions include the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Huntingdon College (AL), Illinois State University, and Illinois Wesleyan University.

Dr. Shin received her BM from Oberlin College-Conservatory of Music, MM and Performance Certificate from Northwestern University, and DMA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she was a sole fellowship recipient. Her teachers include Gregory Fulkerson, Roland and Almita Vamos, and Simin Ganatra of Pacifica Quartet respectfully. 

Her most recent Naxos recording of Czerny Piano Trios was aired on BBC and now available on iTunes, Spotify, and Amazon.