Chinese pianist JAMES (ZIJIAN) WEI is rapidly becoming a rising star among his generation of pianists. His performances are characterized by genuine emotion and unique charm, and are loved and acclaimed by audiences around the world.
In the year 2024, Wei triumphed as the Mixon First Prize winner in the prestigious Cleveland International Piano Competition, while also securing accolades including the Best Chamber Music Performance Award, the Henle Verlag Urtext Special Prize, the Audience Choice prize, and the Young Judge Prize. He is poised to embark on his inaugural recital tours with performances at the esteemed Carnegie Hall in New York City in 2025 and the Tonhalle in Zurich, Switzerland in 2026.
In recent years, Wei has frequently performed as a soloist with renowned orchestras in North America, Europe, and China. For example, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, the Central Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra, the Changsha Symphony Orchestra, the Sichuan Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra, the Zhengzhou Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Wuhan Philharmonic Orchestra, among others, have performed in various prestigious concert halls both domestically and internationally.
Wei pursued his secondary education at the high school affiliated with the Xinghai Conservatory of Music, mentored by Professor Jay Pengjie Sun Professor Liu Xi, and Professor Popova. In the year 2016, he was successfully admitted to the Central Conservatory of Music, and has been undergoing musical education under the esteemed guidance of Professor Wei Danwen, a celebrated pianist and the department chair of the Piano Department at the Central Conservatory of Music.
Wei has achieved remarkable distinctions, including the First Prize in the 2017 Changjiang Cup National University Piano Competition, the Grand Prize in the Professional Category of the 2018 Huanglong Music Season Piano Competition, the First Prize in the 2018 Jianfa Gulangyu International Piano Competition, and the Third Prize in the 76th Geneva International Music Competition, as well as the receipt of the Rose-Marie Huguenin Award in 2022.