Tristan Zhu is a scholarship fellow at the Academy of the Music Institute of Chicago, a training center for advanced pre-college musicians, where he studies with Almita Vamos and Davis King. He began studying violin at age 5, his previous teachers include Aurelien Pederzoli and Timothy Hager.
A member of the 2023 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition Silver Medalist Pelios String Quartet, who also competed and won both the Gold Medal and Best Haydn Performance at 2023 Saint Paul String Quartet Junior Competition.
In 2023, Tristan was awarded the winner of the DePaul Concerto Festival for violin. He was also the First Prize Winner of DuPage Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Auditions, and winner of West Suburb Symphony Solo Competition in the same year. In addition, he was the gold medalist of the International Young Gifted Musicians Festival; and 3rd place winner of Fox Valley Concerto Competition. He has also received awards at Petrichor International Music Competition, the American Protege International Piano & String Competition, VIII Odin International Music Online Competition, International Music Competition “London” Grand Prize Virtuoso and in the Music Performance category of the 2021-2022 Discover FAA High School Talent Competition by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
He has made numerous solo orchestral performances with the Oistrakh Symphony Orchestra, Fox Valley symphony orchestra, DuPage symphony Orchestra, West Suburban Symphony, and the Chicago Arts Orchestra
Tristan has participated in masterclasses and guest coachings with Ani Kavafian, Rachel Barton Pine, Kirill Troussov, David Taylor, the Cuarteto Latinomericano. Summer activities include studying with Sergiu Schwartz at the Bowdoin International Music Festival, attending the Montecito International Music Festival, and the International Academy of Music.
An avid chamber musician, Tristan regularly and actively participates in various chamber groups. As a violist in the Pelios String Quartet, they won Silver medal at 2023 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, and Gold Medal at the 2023 Saint Paul String Quartet Junior Competition, as well as Best Haydn Performance. The Pelios String Quartet was also awarded Second Prize at the 2023 Barnett Chamber Competition. His previous chamber music activities include receiving the Luke Piercy Young Artist Scholarship in 2021; advancing to the Quarterfinals of the 2021 Fischoff National Chamber Competition, and being aired on WFMT “Introductions”. With his groups, Tristan has performed at many community outreach events, including the Jay Pritzker Pavilion for the Grant Park Music Festival, and the Next! Music program at the Chicago Philharmonic.
As an orchestral musician, Tristan performs with the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy Orchestra and Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Symphony Orchestra, with which had a successful European performance tour in the summer of 2022.
Other musical interests include studying viola and composing music. Tristan is also a varsity runner, and has a curious mind for physics and sciences.
Tristan attends Walter Payton College Preparatory High School, a Chicago Public School.
Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61, I. Allegro Ma Non Troppo, Ludwig Van Beethoven , 18:54,
