| Biography |
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| “This one’s going to be the superstar!” - Lang Lang |
Marc Yu was quite used to listening to Beethoven CD's even before he was born for, during
her pregnancy, his mother would play Beethoven's symphonies on the off chance he might
be listening. Perhaps he was, for the infant, from the beginning, would stop crying upon
hearing Beethoven. Later, in his car seat, it was noticed that he would always make rhythmic
sounds during certain passages of the music. He knew and anticipated these passages.
At three, upon his first encounter with a piano, he picked out a tune and lessons soon
followed with Pamela Lam. Marc became the national winner in the 2003 auditions of the
National Guild of Piano Teachers, a feat which he repeated the following year. He
participated in the Classical Music Festival held by the Music Teachers' Association of
California and passed statewide Certificate of Merit music exams in both piano and cello,
which he also performed at the festival to outstanding reviews. In the same year he began
cello lessons with Jennifer Goss and won third place at the Los Angeles Cello Society
Competition for the 16-year-old-and-under category.
Five days after his sixth birthday, in January 2005, Marc was selected to perform at the
master class of the prestigious Virginia Waring International Piano Competition, a world-class
event for young pianists that takes place every four years. Shortly thereafter, he began
studying under Dr. Stephen Cook as a scholarship student at the Colburn School of
Performing Arts in Los Angeles, California.
The Davidson Institute for Talent Development soon took note and awarded Marc their 2005
Fellowship---their youngest recipient to date. Marc was flown to Washington D.C. to accept
the prestigious honor in the Library of Congress where he delivered a heartfelt (and
humorous) speech in support of classical music.
By the end of that year, six-year-old Marc was a seasoned professional featured in numerous
recitals, benefits, and master classes. June 2005 saw his orchestral debut with the
Capistrano Valley Symphony conducted by Carlo Spiga. Two months later, he made his
television debut on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, making a second appearance the
following November playing the cello. Appearances quickly followed with Oprah and Ellen
DeGeneres (he has been a guest on The Ellen Show four times). At Steinway Piano's
invitation, Marc performed on legendary virtuoso Vladimir Horowitz' piano to inaugurate the
Steinway Historical Piano Tour.
In June 2007, in Las Vegas Nevada at the Lake Las Vegas Resort, Marc performed four-hand
piano music (including Schubert's Fantasie in F minor) with none other than his longtime
idol, internationally renowned piano virtuoso Lang Lang. Most recently, Marc has appeared
in festivals in Genoa and San Remo, and in a National Geographic-sponsored two-week tour
of Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
Now a close friend and mentor, Lang Lang has publicly announced plans to include Marc in a
concert at London's Royal Albert Hall in August 2008 and, in 2009, at New York City's Carnegie
Hall as well as Vienna's Musikverein. "Carnegie Hall," muses Lang Lang on camera, just after
making his surprise announcement with Marc seated at his side, "not bad for a ten-year-old!"
her pregnancy, his mother would play Beethoven's symphonies on the off chance he might
be listening. Perhaps he was, for the infant, from the beginning, would stop crying upon
hearing Beethoven. Later, in his car seat, it was noticed that he would always make rhythmic
sounds during certain passages of the music. He knew and anticipated these passages.
At three, upon his first encounter with a piano, he picked out a tune and lessons soon
followed with Pamela Lam. Marc became the national winner in the 2003 auditions of the
National Guild of Piano Teachers, a feat which he repeated the following year. He
participated in the Classical Music Festival held by the Music Teachers' Association of
California and passed statewide Certificate of Merit music exams in both piano and cello,
which he also performed at the festival to outstanding reviews. In the same year he began
cello lessons with Jennifer Goss and won third place at the Los Angeles Cello Society
Competition for the 16-year-old-and-under category.
Five days after his sixth birthday, in January 2005, Marc was selected to perform at the
master class of the prestigious Virginia Waring International Piano Competition, a world-class
event for young pianists that takes place every four years. Shortly thereafter, he began
studying under Dr. Stephen Cook as a scholarship student at the Colburn School of
Performing Arts in Los Angeles, California.
The Davidson Institute for Talent Development soon took note and awarded Marc their 2005
Fellowship---their youngest recipient to date. Marc was flown to Washington D.C. to accept
the prestigious honor in the Library of Congress where he delivered a heartfelt (and
humorous) speech in support of classical music.
By the end of that year, six-year-old Marc was a seasoned professional featured in numerous
recitals, benefits, and master classes. June 2005 saw his orchestral debut with the
Capistrano Valley Symphony conducted by Carlo Spiga. Two months later, he made his
television debut on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, making a second appearance the
following November playing the cello. Appearances quickly followed with Oprah and Ellen
DeGeneres (he has been a guest on The Ellen Show four times). At Steinway Piano's
invitation, Marc performed on legendary virtuoso Vladimir Horowitz' piano to inaugurate the
Steinway Historical Piano Tour.
In June 2007, in Las Vegas Nevada at the Lake Las Vegas Resort, Marc performed four-hand
piano music (including Schubert's Fantasie in F minor) with none other than his longtime
idol, internationally renowned piano virtuoso Lang Lang. Most recently, Marc has appeared
in festivals in Genoa and San Remo, and in a National Geographic-sponsored two-week tour
of Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
Now a close friend and mentor, Lang Lang has publicly announced plans to include Marc in a
concert at London's Royal Albert Hall in August 2008 and, in 2009, at New York City's Carnegie
Hall as well as Vienna's Musikverein. "Carnegie Hall," muses Lang Lang on camera, just after
making his surprise announcement with Marc seated at his side, "not bad for a ten-year-old!"