International Solo & Ensemble Competition 2020/21

Winner

Ensemble Category | Advanced Section

MILA Quartet

Newly established in 2020, the MILA Quartet was the first chamber group to be awarded Fellowship String Quartet at the Tianjin Juilliard School. In July 2021, the group was awarded Gold with Honours from 2020/21 Singapore International Solo & Ensemble Competition.

Coached by the Shanghai Quartet, Yoenjin Kim and Guillaume Sutre, MILA works closely with the Tianjin Juilliard Ensemble and joined them side-by-side at the 2nd Tianjin Chamber Music Festival. Represented by Wu Promotion, MILA recently succeeded in their first national tour. MILA had performed at well-known venues such as Beijing Forbidden City Concert Hall, Shanghai Oriental Art Center, Tianjin Grand Theatre, to name a few.

In February 2021, MILA shared a concert with the Shanghai Quartet at Tianjin Juilliard’s inaugural “Festival Connect”, and gave the world premiere of Adam Kondor’s Vita Nova with renowned conductor Chen Lin and the Tianjin Juilliard Orchestra. MILA received an interview from China Daily in March 2021 and was described “…for many of its lovers that is just what gives chamber music its appeal.” After listening to MILA’s Bártok String Quartet No. 4, a well-known conductor and violinist Gábor Takács-Nagy praised them “gifted and insightful playing”.

MILA Quartet plays on the W.E. Hill & Sons instruments, generously sponsored by Ms Li from Shenzhen.

PROFILE

Ke Karl Zhu, violinist of the MILA Quartet, was a prize winner of Menuhin and Tchaikovsky Competition for young musicians. Karl won the first prize in the Eisenberg-Fried Concerto Competition in the US and the inaugural “Jin Zhong” String Quartet Competition in China.

Karl appeared in Kronberg Academy, Morningside Music Bridge in Calgary and Texas Music Festival. He received his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Violin Performance at the Manhattan School of Music. His previous teachers include Guillaume Sutre, Lucie Robert and Weidong Tong. Now he studies with Wei He and Weigang Li at the Tianjin Juilliard School.

Xinyang Lv, the cellist of the MILA Quartet, was admitted to the Central Conservatory of Music with a first-place result in 2013 and was awarded the third prize of the Great Wall International Music Academy Chamber Competition 2013 and second prize of International Players of Busan 2014. While at CCOM, Xinyang studied with Prof. Mingqing Yu. She attended a master class by Lynn Hall and was highly praised. As the principal cellist of China Youth Symphony Orchestra, Xinyang performed with Lynn Hall, Vadim Repin, Lang Lang, Liwei Qin, En Shao and more. After graduation from Central Conservatory of Music, Lv joined the Central Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra and served as the acting assistant principal cellist in September 2017. Lv is a graduate student at Tianjin Juilliard School and studies with Yeonjin Kim and Nicholas Tzavaras.

Huan Ci, the violinist of the MILA Quartet, was a First Prize winner of the “Thomas Cooper” International Violin Competition in China and a Third Prize Winner of the Hong Kong International Violin Competition. He has participated in the Meadowmont and Texas Music Festival as well as the Baroque Music Festival at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. He received his Master’s Degree in violin performance at Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute and a Bachelor’s Degree at Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, National University of Singapore. I was also a student at the Middle School affiliated with the Central Conservatory of Music. Ci’s former teachers include Hong Wang, Jun Zuo, Keng-Yuen Tseng. Now he studies with Weigang Li and Wei He at the Tianjin Juilliard School.

Zhangjuan Liu, violist of the MILA Quartet, was the highest prize winner of Princess Galvani Vadhana International Ensemble Competition in Bangkok, Thailand.

At the age of 14, Zhangjuan performed chamber concerts with world-renowned violinist Midori as a Sichuan Conservatory of Music Middle School student. Zhangjuan has been invited to many prestigious music festivals such as Sarasota Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival and School, Ozawa International Chamber Music Academy and Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival. She was also a member of 2016 Nobuko Imai Viola Masterclass in Otaru.

Zhangjuan received Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree from Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. Her primary teachers included principal violist of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Manchin Zhang, and Grammy-winning, former Cleveland String Quartet violist James Dunham.

Currently, She is studying with Sheila Browne and Honggang Li at the Tianjin Juilliard School.

MILA四重奏  成立于 2020 年,天津茱莉亚学院首届全额奖学金四重奏,由四位杰出青年演奏家朱可、慈欢、刘章卷和吕昕阳组成。在2021年7月,MILA四重奏斩获新加坡国际独奏、室内乐大赛杰出金奖。

师从享誉全球的上海四重奏的同时,MILA也长期接受金兗珍和纪晓姆・苏特教授指导。年轻的MILA在第二届天津室内乐音乐节中崭露头角,并在2021年度吴氏策划独家代理的中国巡演中广受好评。MILA的足迹遍布北京中山音乐堂、上海东方艺术中心、天津大剧院等,并与上海四重奏在首届天津茱莉亚汇聚音乐节中同台演出。此次汇聚音乐节里,MILA与著名指挥陈琳与天津茱莉亚管弦乐团合作,首演了当代匈牙利作曲家亚当・康多的作品《重生》。2021年5月,MILA四重奏接受中国日报周刊专访并被给予“吸引室内乐爱好者”的评价。在听过MILA演奏巴托克第四首弦乐四重奏之后,匈牙利传奇音乐家塔卡什-纳伊盛赞“极具天赋和想象力”。

MILA四重奏现就读于天津茱莉亚学院,所用的全套W.E. Hill&Sons乐器由深圳李女士慷慨赞助。

朱可  MILA 四重奏小提琴,中国音乐家协会会员。现就读于天津茱莉亚研究生室内乐

专业,曾师从于纪晓姆・苏特教授,现师从何为教授和李伟纲教授。朱可曾获得美国艾森伯格・弗雷德协奏曲比赛第 一名,中国“金钟奖”首届四重奏比赛第一名,以及梅纽因国际小提琴比赛和柴可夫斯基青少年音乐比赛奖项,同时也是格莱美音乐奖和宾利奖学金的获得者。朱可曾参与德国克朗伯格音乐节,加拿大晨兴音乐桥和美国德州音乐节,且受邀在钓鱼台国宾馆为美国前国务卿赖斯和希拉里・克林顿进行独奏表演。朱可曾就读于中央音乐学院附中,师从童卫东教授。2019年毕业于美国曼哈顿音乐学院,师从露茜・罗伯特并取得本科和研究生文凭。留学归国后,朱可成为中央音乐学院交响乐团演奏员。建国70周年期间,朱可曾参与录制电影《我和我的祖国》主题曲小提琴独奏。

慈欢  MILA四重奏小提琴,现就读于天津茱莉亚学院室内乐专业,师从上海四重奏第一小提琴李伟纲教授和何为教授。慈欢是日本古典音乐协会主办的“亚洲城市古典音乐大赛”中国赛区专业少年组金奖、长城国际音乐夏令营室内乐比赛第一名、香港国际青少年小提琴比赛第三名,和美国奥柏林音乐学院托马斯库博杯并获得中国赛区第一名的获得者。慈欢曾分别受邀参加由上海音乐学院举办的首届室内乐“巴洛克”音乐节、美国的草山音乐节和美国德州音乐节并获得全额奖学金。2013年毕业于中央音乐学院附中,师从著名小提琴教育家王泓教授。2013和2017年,慈欢分别以全额奖学金考入新加坡杨秀桃音乐学院和美国约翰霍普金斯皮博迪音乐学院,师从著名小提琴演奏家、教育家左军教授和曾耿元教授,并获得本科和研究生文凭。2019-2020年,慈欢任职于中央音乐学院交响乐团第一小提琴,参与建国70周年千人交响乐和在美国卡内基音乐厅举行的新作品音乐会等重要演出。

刘章卷  MILA四重奏中提琴,2017年泰国瓦哈娜公主国际室内乐大赛最高奖项获得者,现天津茱莉亚学院首届室内乐专业研究生。在四川音乐学院附中学习期间,14岁的刘章卷与国际著名小提琴家宓多里合作并演出了门德尔松的四重奏作品。2013和2018年,刘章卷先后获得全额奖学金赴新加坡国立大学杨秀桃音乐学院和美国莱斯大学深造,分别师从新加坡交响乐团中提琴首席张曼琴女士和前克利夫兰弦乐四重奏中提琴演奏家、格莱美奖获得者詹姆斯・杜汉姆先生,并获得本科及研究生文凭。在学习期间,刘章卷曾两次获全额奖学金及特别荣誉奖金参加美国阿斯彭音乐节,受邀参加小泽征尔国际室内乐音乐祭、松本音乐祭,和2016年的日本小樽今井信子中提琴大师班。目前,刘章卷跟随茜拉・布朗和李宏刚老师学习。

吕昕阳  MILA四重奏大提琴。曾师从著名大提琴演奏家、教育家俞明青教授、俞佳教授和蒋力行先生。2013年,吕昕阳以第一名的成绩考入中央音乐学院并担任中国青年交响乐团首席。她曾参加世界著名大提琴大师林恩・哈雷尔、伯纳德・格林豪斯、马蒂・罗西等大师班并获得一致好评。2017年,吕昕阳考入中央音乐学院交响乐团,并参与实景歌剧“一带一路”《图兰朵》、建国70周年千人交响乐等乐团重要活动。2020年,吕昕阳考入天津茱莉亚学院研究生室内乐专业,师从于金兗珍和尼古拉斯・萨瓦拉斯。曾获长城国际音乐夏令营2013年度室内乐比赛三等奖。2014年8月获韩国釜山国际音乐节大提琴比赛二等奖。