Arts Division
Lecturer in Piano
Faculty
Music Building
Art Department
Dr. Chia-Lin Yang is acclaimed for her pianistic artistry, characterized by critics as possessing "the requisite touch of poetry that eludes so many pianists." Her career as a concert pianist and chamber musician has taken her on tours across the United States, Canada, and her native Taiwan.
Dr. Yang’s achievements include winning top prizes at prestigious competitions such as the Seattle International Piano Competition and the Kingsville Isabel Scionti Solo Piano Competition. These victories have propelled her to perform at renowned venues such as Benaroya Hall and the Banff Centre's Rolston Recital Hall, along with national broadcast on WQXR in Minnesota. Dr. Yang's list of accolades extends to competitions such as the National Arts and Letters Competition, WAMSO Young Artist Competition, Camerata Concerto Competition, and Wideman Piano Concerto Competition. She is also a recipient of the Hellen von Ammon Fund for Emerging Artists and the 2023 Doug Davis Composition and Performance Endowment Award of California State University Bakersfield.
Being enthusiastic about chamber music, Dr. Yang dedicates her time to collaboration with renowned fellow musicians. She is the founder of the Aristo Trio, the Aristo Duo, the Yang-Shin-Bate Trio, and a participant at the Sarasota Chamber Music Festival in Florida. In 2019, she co-founded the Verve Trio with violinist Elbert Tsai and cellist Brady Anderson, winning the Gold Prize at the 2022 Amadeus International Music Awards of Salzburg. The trio has quickly established itself as an ensemble of technical precision and musical flair engaging audiences throughout the San Francisco Bay Area with innovative programs featuring familiar masterpieces as well as lesser-known works highlighting the influence of tango, jazz, and more.
Dr. Yang holds both her Doctor’s and Master’s degrees in piano performance from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music under the tutelage of André Watts and Evelyne Brancart. She was on faculty at Indiana University and West Valley College in Saratoga where she established the acclaimed WVC Young Artist Concert Series. Currently, Dr. Yang has served as a Lecturer in Piano at UC Santa Cruz since 2017 and as a piano instructor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College Academy and Continuing Education Division. Her students have won hundreds of awards, soloed with orchestras, participated in prominent music festivals and programs across the country.
