Qin and Strings: A Century of Chinese Music
Sunday, February 8, 2026
12:30 AM
Location shared upon purchase of ticket(s).
Celebrate the Lunar New Year with a program of evocative and lyrical works for violin and piano rooted in Chinese musical traditions. Violinist Ann Yu and pianist Irwin Shung present a concert exploring themes of love, longing, and transformation through iconic works and lesser-known gems.
At the heart of the program is The Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto, one of the most beloved Chinese orchestral works, here performed in its virtuosic arrangement for violin and piano. Based on a centuries-old legend often called the “Chinese Romeo and Juliet,” the concerto weaves Chinese pentatonic melodies with romantic Western textures in a deeply moving narrative arc.
The program also includes selections inspired by traditional Chinese folk music, poetic miniatures, and contemporary works celebrating the richness of China’s musical heritage.
Join us in welcoming the New Year through music that bridges cultures and generations.
Celebrate the Lunar New Year with a program of evocative and lyrical works for violin and piano rooted in Chinese musical traditions. Violinist Ann Yu and pianist Irwin Shung present a concert exploring themes of love, longing, and transformation through iconic works and lesser-known gems.
At the heart of the program is The Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto, one of the most beloved Chinese orchestral works, here performed in its virtuosic arrangement for violin and piano. Based on a centuries-old legend often called the “Chinese Romeo and Juliet,” the concerto weaves Chinese pentatonic melodies with romantic Western textures in a deeply moving narrative arc.
The program also includes selections inspired by traditional Chinese folk music, poetic miniatures, and contemporary works celebrating the richness of China’s musical heritage.
Join us in welcoming the New Year through music that bridges cultures and generations.
Program
Seven Chinese Characters Irwin Shung (b. 1984)
Romance of Hsiao and Ch'in Chen Yi (b. 1953)
Hero Sonata: IV. Sorrow in the Desert Tan Dun (b. 1957)
Dragon Lantern Dance Ma Sicong (1912-1987)
The Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto He Zhanhao (b. 1933) and Chen Gang (b. 1935)
Artists
Ann Yu, violin
Praised for her “full-bodied, rich, and warm tone” (Cleveland.com), violinist and educator Ann Yu draws endless inspiration from exploring multiple genres and musical styles in the historical and modern musical traditions, leading her to unique and groundbreaking projects with Apollo’s Fire, the Poiema Trio, the Caroga Arts Collective, Project: Music Heals Us, CLE Concierto, and the Resonance Master Series. Ann earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with Jaime Laredo, Jan Sloman, and William Preucil, and was the 1st prize winner of the 26th Annual Darius Milhaud Competition and Concerto Competition and the recipient of the Fortnightly Musical Club Award. Her training also includes prestigious programs such as Thy Masterclass, Kneisel Hall, the Perlman Music Program, the New York String Orchestra Seminar, the National Youth Orchestra-USA, and the Credo Festival, where she later served on faculty for four summers. As a soloist, she has appeared with the Cleveland Orchestra, the CIM Orchestra, and the National Repertory Orchestra. In Cleveland, Ann performs regularly with Apollo’s Fire, Forest City Strings (Candlelight Concerts), and in local chamber music settings. She teaches privately and through the Cleveland Orchestra’s Crescendo Program at the Cleveland School of the Arts and Campus International School. She also enjoys jamming with local bluegrass, old-time, blues, tango, and swing jazz musicians. In her free time, Ann loves sight reading chamber music, hiking in the national park, and dancing lindy hop and blues.
Irwin Shung, piano
-“…lets the notes ring, as if painting with the reverberation. Like a gradually cresting wave, the intensity peaks…”
–Cleveland Classical
Dr. Irwin Shung, whose playing has been praised by State Magazine for its “ease, technique, and musicianship,” has performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Shung teaches keyboard ensembles at Case Western Reserve University, in addition to serving as Artistic Director of The Resonance Project since its founding in Seattle. He maintains an active musical profile both on the American West Coast and in Northeast Ohio, where he was recently selected as Heights Arts’ Artist of the Month. As President of the Northeast Ohio Music Teachers Association, Shung oversaw the development of dynamic new programs for hundreds of regional precollegiate music students in Cuyahoga, Geauga, and Lorain Counties.
Shung received his D.M.A. in Piano Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music in 2015, where he studied with Dr. Daniel Shapiro. Other teachers include Marian Hahn (Peabody Conservatory), Leon Fleisher (Peabody Conservatory), Herbert Stessin (Juilliard School), Gabriel Chodos (New England Conservatory), and Victoria Bogdashevskaya (Moscow Conservatory). Awards received include the Pauline Favin Memorial Award from the Peabody Conservatory of Music and a win in the Darius Milhaud Competition. Shung recently premiered his work for solo piano, Seven Chinese Characters, alongside a live painting by the internationally renowned artist Li Qian. In October 2026, he will present a recital inspired by with the Cleveland Museum of Art in conjunction with its upcoming exhibition Ten Kings of Hell.