| Kevin Zhu | |
| Birth Date: | 27 November 2000 |
| Birth Place: | Maryland, U.S.A. |
| Instrument: | Violin |
| Genre: | Classical |
Kevin Zhu (Chinese: 朱凯源, born on November 27, 2000) is an American concert violinist. He is a recipient of the 2021 [1] and was the first prize winner of the 55th edition of the International Paganini Competition in Genoa, Italy, aged just 17.[2] He was also the first prize winner in the junior division of the 2012 Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists in Beijing, China.[3] In 2019, he made his debut at Carnegie Hall at Weill Recital Hall.[4]
Born in Maryland, USA, Kevin Zhu started playing violin at the age of 3. He attended elementary and middle schools in Cupertino, California. He was a pre-college student of Li Lin at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.[5] As a recipient of a Kovner Fellowship at The Juilliard School, Zhu is studying along with Itzhak Perlman and Li Lin.
Following his success at the Menuhin Competition and Paganini competition, Zhu has been a featured soloist with orchestras such as the Philharmonia Orchestra,[6] the Vienna Chamber Orchestra,[7] the Moscow Virtuosi Orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and the China Philharmonic Orchestra.[8] He also performs solo recitals across the United States, Italy, Germany, England, Poland, China, and Lebanon. Zhu has repeatedly been featured on BBC Radio 3 and NPR's From the Top. In 2021-2022, Zhu will perform on a multi-city tour of Italy and will perform a project that involves to play all of Paganini's 24 caprices in one concert.[3]
Zhu currently performs on the 1722 ‘Lord Wandsworth’ Stradivarius violin — on long term loan to him from the Ryuji Ueno Foundation and the Rare Violins of New York "In Consortium".