Shaun Choo was born in Singapore and commenced piano at the age of seven. Upon attaining his Diploma in Music Performance at fourteen under Ms. Lena Ching, he pursued his studies abroad at the University Mozarteum Salzburg, Austria, graduating as “Bachelor of Arts” under professors Karl-Heinz Kämmerling and Andreas Weber and “Master of Arts” under professor Jacques Rouvier with highest distinction. He is the first and only external piano candidate in many years to be successfully admitted into the prestigious “Konzertexamen” Postgraduate Program at the Berlin University of the Arts under the tutelage of professor Björn Lehmann. Further mentors include Dmitri Alexeev, Bernd Goetzke, Matti Raekallio and Dang Thai Son.
PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS
Shaun’s performing career has taken him across Europe and Asia. Venue highlights include the National Concert Hall Beijing, Bregenzer Festspielhaus, Leipziger Gewandhaus, Esplanade Concert Hall and Chopin’s birthplace in Zelazowa Wola. He has been invited to festivals such as the Schwetzinger Festspiele, Duszniki Chopin Piano Festival, Klavierfrühling Deutschlandsberg, Singapore International Piano Festival and Festival Piano Pic, and has performed at various international events and congresses. Shaun often appears as a soloist with orchestras such as the Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz, Mozarteum Symphony Orchestra, Daegu Philharmonic, Leipzig Academic Orchestra and Orchestre de Pau.
COMPETITION AWARDS
Shaun is a prizewinner at more than ten international competitions, including nine first prizes. He emerged victorious at the 3rd International Piano Competition Istanbul Orchestra’ Sion and is a five-time prizewinner in international Chopin competitions held in Hungary, France, China, South Korea and Australia. Other notable triumphs include the Artur Schnabel Piano Competition Berlin, Grotrian Steinweg Piano Competition Beijing and ZF Musikpreis Friedrichshafen, and prizes at the “Flame” International Competition Paris and Blüthner Golden Tone Award in Vienna.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Shaun is an increasingly sought-after teacher, with many of his students winning prizes in international competitions themselves. He is frequently invited to conduct masterclasses and lectures, often at established institutions such as the Steinway STEPS program, Keimyung University (Daegu, South Korea), Bela Bartok University (Miskolc, Hungary) and the International Summer Academy Mozarteum (Salzburg, Austria). He holds the title of Adjunct Lecturer at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Singapore.
NOTABLE COMPOSITIONS
As an avid composer, Shaun often performs his own works during recitals. He was commissioned by the Singapore Armed Forces to compose the Signal Formation Song during his two-year military service. His 4-hands work “Fiestravaganza” has nearly 6 million cumulative views on YouTube. It has won numerous prizes at duo competitions and has sold hundreds of copies online.
FOUNDING AN ORCHESTRA
In 2022, Shaun formed the Camerata Fiestravaganza, a new chamber orchestra which brings together over 50 personally-selected talented musicians from diverse cultures and ethnicities, the majority of whom are current students from the three major Universities of music in Berlin – Universität der Künste, Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler and Barenboim-Said Akademie.
ESTABLISHING A PIANO ACADEMY
The following year, he founded the Fiestravaganza International Music Academy (FIMA). The first major piano summer academy in the German capital, FIMA offers particularly young talents a variety of opportunities otherwise hard to obtain in one’s early career. Participants gain recognition through numerous performances, while working with renowned instructors and guest speakers via the masterclasses/seminars offered. They will also get the exclusive chance to work on Bechstein’s extensive Vintage Keyboard Instrument collection. As the highlight, selected participants will get to perform a movement of a piano concerto with the Camerata Fiestravaganza, hosted in the great halls of the academy’s cooperation partner – the University of the Arts Berlin.
