Cellist Chia-Ling Chien has been the Associate Principal Cello with the San Diego Symphony since 2009. Previous positions include section cello of the Canton Symphony (OH) and the Akron Symphony (OH).
Chia-Ling was born in Taipei, Taiwan, and began playing the piano at the age of six and cello at the age of nine. Chia-Ling’s first public cello performance was a year later at the age of ten, soon followed by her first honor of winning first place of the National Taipei Youth Cello Competition at the age of twelve. Her awards include: four years of first prize wins in the Taipei Cello Competition; second prize winner of the National Taiwan Cello Competition; second prize winner of the International Taipei Chopin Piano Competition; best Bach Performance Prize for Strings at the Corpus Christi International Competition; winner of the Cleveland Institute of Music Concerto Competition; the Ellis A. Feiman Memorial Award in Cello; the Anna Sosenko Trust Foundation Award; a Colburn Foundation instrument sponsorship.
Chia-Ling has performed throughout the United States and Asia. Her festival appearances include the Pacific Music Festival, 2002, in which she was the youngest member (and was invited back for 2003 and 2004); the Blossom Music Festival; a three-year fellowship at the Aspen Music Festival and School from 2005 to 2007; the Sarasota Music Festival; and the Perlman Music Program (Chamber Music Workshop). She has collaborated over the years with many musicians such as Gil Shaham, Adele Anthony, Vivian Weilerstein, Joel Smirnoff, Herbert Greenberg and Itzhak Perlman.
Chia-Ling is a graduate of The Cleveland Institute of Music, where she received both Bachelor and Master of Music degrees (2007, 2009). Her principal teachers are Desmond Hoebig, Stephen Geber and Michael Mermagen.