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Minna
Re Shin | In the words of the legendary Russian pianist Lazar
Berman, "Minna Re Shin and her great talent." This
versatile Canadian pianist has won enthusiasm for her diverse
repertoire, ranging from Baroque to innovative contemporary works.
The recipient of numerous awards, fellowships and grants, including
those from Canada Council for the Arts, Le Conseil des Arts et
des Lettres du Québec, and FACTOR (The Foundation to Assist
Canadian Talent On Records), she has excited and captured the
hearts of audiences around the world with her virtuoso technique,
mature artistry, stage personality, and rare sensitivity. Critics
have raved her performances as "intense," "inspiring"
and "powerful."
Born in Montréal, Minna
Re Shin began studying piano at the early age of six. Having
completed her studies at the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto
with the highest honours, she received the A.R.C.T. (Associateship
of the Royal Conservatory of Toronto) diploma, the gold medal
and the Helen Tough Murray Scholarship. Before pursuing further
musical training in Montréal, she studied at Temple University
in Philadelphia on a full scholarship. At the age of 19, she
earned her Bachelor of Music degree in solo performance at McGill
University and graduated top of her class. Then at the same institution,
she earned her Master of Music degree in solo performance with
highest distinction. She also holds a Doctorate of Music in performance
specializing in twentieth-century repertoire from Université
de Montréal and a PhD in music theory with emphasis on
nineteenth-century music from McGill University.
Among her achievements, Minna
Re Shin has won numerous prizes in national and international
competitions. She was first-prize winner in the piano category
of the 1990 Montréal Symphony Orchestra Competition and
the Canadian Music Competitions in 1980 and 1984. In 1988, she
was awarded first prize in the piano category as well as the
Grand Prize (among all of the instrumental categories) in the
National Music Competition. As the laureate of the 1984 International
Concertino Praga Competition, she was invited by the Czechoslovakian
government to perform on a tour in that country. Furthermore,
she was a winner of the 1985 International Stravinsky Competition.
Since her solo début
at the age of 10 with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra under the
direction of Mario Duschenes, Minna Re Shin has performed in
Canada, the United States, Europe, Australia and Asia. She has
received high praise as recitalist, chamber pianist, and soloist
in concerts with major orchestras, such as the Montréal
Chamber Orchestra, the chamber orchestra I Musici de Montréal,
and the Orchestre symphonique de Trois-Rivières, and with
distinguished conductors like Charles Dutoit, Timothy Vernon,
and Jacques Lacombe. This dynamic artist has also been invited
to perform in many festivals, including the Nordic Contemporary
Music Festival held in Montréal where she premiered in
Canada the Fourth Piano Concerto by the Finnish composer Mikko
Heinio with the McGill Chamber Singers and the McGill Sinfonietta
under the direction of Iwan Edwards, and recently the prestigious
International Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt where she made her
Austrian début. Appearances at various music conferences
include the Music Theory Midwest Conference held in Minnesota
and the Feminist Theory and Music 4 Conference held in Virginia,
where she gave a lecture-recital presentation on Franz Liszt's
B-minor Sonata. Moreover, she has been invited to give master
classes at major universities and specialized performing art
schools in Canada, Australia and China.
Minna Re Shin has been actively
involved with radio and television since her radio broadcast
début at the age of 10, when her performing work was featured
on Radio-Canada. Since then, many of her public performances
have been aired throughout Canada on the Radio-Canada and CBC
networks. She has also appeared as guest artist on several television
programs, including the popular Quebec program Réné
Simard Variety Show in 1985. When she made her début appearance
in China in 2002, her recital in Beijing was aired throughout
that metropolis by the China Central Television Network.
Minna Re Shin's début
CD devoted to Haydn piano sonatas on the ombú productions
label has been released to great critical acclaim. Le Journal
de Montréal hailed her as a "great performer with
great sensitivity and intelligence." Following the success
of this recording, Shin has embarked on a multi-recording project
with ombú. Her second solo album, Images & Ballades,
which features works by the Canadian composers Alain Payette
and Jean Coulthard, was released in the summer of 2007. Paroles
et Musique wrote that "the pianist's interpretation is impeccable;
it was as if these two composers had lent her their pen."
Her third CD on the DCM Classique label focuses on chamber music
works by the French composer Georges Delerue and has been released
in October 2008.
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