Kun Dong
The Rhine Quartet
Violin
Kun Dong began studying the violin at age five with her father and received formal training at age ten at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Later she earned her Artist Diploma from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor of Music Degree from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
A versatile performer, Kun Dong has appeared as a solo and chamber music player throughout the United States and her native China. Her numerous recitals took her to many countries in Europe, including Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Germany, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, England, Russia, and Canada. She was a featured soloist with the London Royal Chamber Orchestra under Sir Yehudi Menuhin and performed in London at age 13. She also appeared with many prestigious orchestras such as the Shanghai Radio Symphony Orchestra, Beijing Ballet, and the Central Conservatory Philharmonic when she was studying in China. Kun arrived in the United States in 1993. She performed many concerts with the Pacific Symphony Orchestra under Maestro Saint Clair and the West Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra as a featured soloist.
Kun Dong won the H. Weiniawski Prize for Best Performance in the at the first Beijing International Violin competition in 1986. She also won the Best Performance Award in Chinese Folk Music. In 1987, she was the Grand Prize winner of the Third Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition. She also won the Grand Prize in the Pasadena Instrumental Competition, the First Prize in the Pacific Symphony Concerto Competition, Second Prize in the Carmel Instrumental Competition, Third Prize in the Santa Barbara String Competition, and Second Prize in the Schadt International Violin Competition.
An enthusiastic chamber music performer, Mrs. Dong has participated in numerous master classes held by leading musicians, most notably Zvi Zeitlin, Anne Epperson, Peter Salaff, Eudice Shapiro, Alice Schoenfeld, and the Munich Quartet. She was on full scholarship to participate in the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival.