New England Conservatory announces the Institute for Concert Artists (ICA at NEC), a professional program, and NEC Concert Artists Series
(September 2024)—New England Conservatory (NEC) is pleased to announce the launch of the Institute for Concert Artists (ICA at NEC) and its flagship NEC Concert Artist Series, which will be a cornerstone of the Institute. Expanding on the legacy of NEC’s prestigious Artist Diploma – its highest-level performance designation – the ICA offers a transformative experience for artists of extraordinary talent who are on the threshold of major performing careers. A dynamic pathway to launching a professional life, this two-year, highly selective program will provide the ICA artists with curated access to preeminent performers and innovative arts leaders in addition to individualized mentorship from NEC’s esteemed faculty. Artists emerge from the program comprehensively equipped to navigate the demands of a professional career with confidence and vision.
The ICA will include seven artists during this initial year – Joshua Brown, violin; Josie Larsen, soprano; Yunchan Lim, piano; Evren Ozel, piano; Changyong Shin, piano; Yutong Sun, piano; and Dani Jingdan Zhang, soprano – and will expand to eight over the next two years as Jazz and Contemporary Musical Arts are added to the program.
The artists will work with the ICA Advisor, pianist Gloria Chien, who earned undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral degrees from NEC, and is the Artistic Director of Chamber Music Northwest, String Theory, and the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival. Chien comments:
| “We’re excited to build on the foundation of mentorship by NEC’s distinguished faculty to propel young artists towards dynamic performance careers with greater connection to professional resources, opportunities, purpose, and profile through the Institute for Concert Artists.” |
In conjunction with the formation of the ICA at NEC, an Advisory Council of creative innovators and artistic leaders will serve as thought partners for Kalyn and Chien, providing perspective and counsel on programming and guidance for NEC Concert Artists, to support and strengthen their success.
Applications for Fall 2025 will open on Monday, September 16, 2024. More information about the Institute for Concert Artists can be found here.
About Gloria Chien, Advisor, Institute for Concert Artists (ICA)
Taiwanese-born pianist Gloria Chien has a singularly diverse musical life, as a noted performer, concert presenter, and educator. She made her orchestral debut at the age of sixteen with the Boston Symphony Orchestra with Thomas Dausgaard, and she performed again with the BSO under Keith Lockhart. She was subsequently selected by the Boston Globe as one of its Superior Pianists of the year, “who appears to excel in everything.” In recent seasons, she has performed as a recitalist and chamber musician at Alice Tully Hall, the Library of Congress, the Phillips Collection, the Dresden Chamber Music Festival, and the National Concert Hall in Taiwan. She performs frequently with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. In 2009, she launched String Theory, a chamber music series in Chattanooga, Tennessee that has become one of the region’s premier classical music presenters. The following year she was appointed Director of the Chamber Music Institute at Music@Menlo, a position she held for the next decade.
In 2017, she joined her husband, violinist Soovin Kim, as artistic director of the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival in Burlington, Vermont. The duo became artistic directors at Chamber Music Northwest in Portland, Oregon in 2020. They were named recipients of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Award for Extraordinary Service in 2021 for their efforts during the pandemic. Most recently, Gloria released two albums: Gloria Chien LIVE on the Music@Menlo LIVE label, and Here With You with acclaimed clarinetist Anthony McGill on Cedille Records. Gloria received her bachelor, master’s and doctoral degrees at the New England Conservatory of Music with Wha Kyung Byun and Russell Sherman. She is Artist-in-Residence at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, and she is a Steinway Artist.
About New England Conservatory of Music (NEC)
Founded by Eben Tourjée in Boston, Massachusetts in 1867, the New England Conservatory (NEC) represents a new model of music school that combines the best of European tradition with American innovation. The school stands at the center of Boston’s rich cultural history and musical life, presenting concerts at the renowned Jordan Hall. Propelled by profound artistry, bold creativity, and deep compassion, NEC seeks to amplify musicians’ impact on advancing our shared humanity and empowers students to meet today’s changing world head-on, equipped with the tools and confidence to forge multidimensional lives of artistic depth and relevance.
As an independent, not-for-profit institution that educates and trains musicians of all ages from around the world, NEC is recognized internationally as a leader among music schools. It cultivates a diverse, dynamic community, providing music students from more than 40 countries with performance opportunities and high-caliber training from 225 internationally esteemed artist-teachers and scholars. NEC pushes the boundaries of music-making and teaching through college-level training in classical, jazz and contemporary musical arts. Through unique interdisciplinary programs such as Entrepreneurial Musicianship and Community Performances & Partnerships, it empowers students to create their own musical opportunities. As part of NEC’s mission to make lifelong music education available to everyone, NEC’s Expanded Education delivers training and performance opportunities for children, pre-college students and adults.