Bio

Dr. Chia-Ying Hsu is the founder, conductor, and instructor of the East Asian Music Ensemble, the Youth String Orchestra at Harper College, the Chicago Tzu-Chi String Orchestra, and the Avian Trio of Formosa. She is a multi-instrumentalist skilled in violin, viola, and piano, and she both performs and teaches these instruments, as well as improvises on them.

Dr. Hsu has gained recognition for her exceptional musical talents. She won the Italy Padova International Music Competition and placed first in several competitions in Taiwan. In 2005, she was invited by the Chicago Suzuki Organization (WSSTE) to perform at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Hall. Furthermore, in 2007, she received the Exemplary Performance Award from the Illinois Music Educators Association (ILMEA) and was also honored with a Teacher Certificate of Recognition from the 2024 International Youth Music Competition in Atlanta, USA.

Her live performances have been broadcast on Italian Web Radio TEM (Taukay Edizioni Musicali) and featured on WFMT 98.7, Chicago's Fine Arts and Classical Radio Station, as well as on Chicago Cable Channel 25 in the Chicagoland area. Additionally, her trio has been invited to perform at the 2024 Taiwan National Day celebration.

In addition to her active involvement in classical music, Dr. Hsu specializes in contemporary music performances. Her doctoral dissertation focuses on viola and electroacoustic music. She has premiered numerous works of solo violin and viola, along with electronic music, using a five-string electric violin. Several composers, including Christopher Adler (U.S.), Lars Carlsson (Sweden), and Tsai-Yun Huang (Taiwan), have dedicated solo viola pieces to her.

Dr. Hsu has performed with several ensembles, including the Violent Femmes, Gene Coleman’s Noamnesia, MAVerick, and the Millennium Chamber Players. She earned her doctoral degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, her master's from the Freiburg Conservatory of Music in Germany, and her diploma from the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, Austria. 

She previously taught at DePaul University and Saint Xavier University. Currently, she teaches at Harper College, where she is the director of the East Asian Music Ensemble. Additionally, she serves on the Harper College search committee and regularly conducts workshops on the electric violin.

In 2024, she established the Avian Trio of Formosa, which consists of her and her two children, Vincent Lan and Annabelle Lan. That same year, she founded the Formosa Violin Camp, held annually at her private studio, Dr. Hsu's Studio. Additionally, since 2004, she has served as a judge for the ILMEA orchestra auditions and has been a member of the music faculty at the OPUS Chamber Music Camp.

Dr. Hsu's students have won 1st place in music competitions including the International BTHVN WIEN Competition, the International Artists Competition in Vienna, the Global Musical Arts Competition Concerto Competition, the Amadeus International Music Awards, the Royal Mass International Competition, the New York International Music Competition, the Virtuoso International Music Awards, the International Youth Music Competitions, the London Young Musician Competition, the Licata Memorial Contest, the Illinois Music Association Contest, and the Granquist Competition and second prize of London International Music Competition. Others have been accepted to the Illinois Music Education Association, University of Illinois Philharmonia Orchestra, World Youth Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Schaumburg Youth Symphony Orchestra, Midwest Young Artists, Illinois School Youth Music, Northbrook Youth Symphony Orchestra.