Overview
Dr. Vera Hui-pin Hsu is a pianist and conductor. She has given piano recitals and lecture concerts internationally in Austria, Germany, Italy, Israel, China, Taiwan, and the U.S. Vera also has toured with the New Haifa Symphony Orchestra. Since 2011, Vera has had a robust collaboration with the Taiwan Philharmonic (aka the National Symphony Orchestra in Taiwan), showcasing her versatility in a spectrum of performances. Her interpretation of Sung-jen Hsu’s piano concerto, “Pounding Rain,” was recorded with the Taiwan Philharmonic and is featured in the Voice of Taiwan series on the Naxos Music Library. For many years, Vera served as a rehearsal pianist for operas and vocal-related symphonic works such as Wagner’s Ring Cycle, Verdi’s Requiem, Salome, Fidelio, Das Lied von der Erde, and Chesky’s The Mice War, produced by Taiwan Philharmonic and National Taichung Theater.
An avid chamber music performer, Vera was presented by various esteemed organizers in Taiwan. She has also premiered several Taiwanese contemporary compositions in New York City, including Carnegie Hall (Weill Hall). In 2021, her piano performance was further captured in two CD releases, "From Formosa" and "Reading Pushkin."
A winner of the 2009 International Conductors Workshop and Competition in Georgia, U.S.A., Dr. Hsu's conducting prowess has seen her lead a variety of ensembles. From 2019 to 2023, she has held the position of the principal conductor of HSNU Symphony Orchestra and Da-An String Orchestra, two leading youth orchestras in Taiwan. Her role as assistant conductor for the Taiwan Philharmonic's 2013 Europe tour and the honor of conducting in Maestro Seiji Ozawa’s master class in Taiwan underscore her reputation.
Vera was born in Taipei City, Taiwan and began studying piano at 5 and violin at 6 years old. She is under the mentorship of Martin Canin at Graduate Center, City University of New York, where she received her doctoral degree in piano performance. From 2015 to 2023, She taught in National Taiwan Normal University, Soochow University, Fu-Jen University, and HSNU in Taipei. Dr. Hsu currently resides in Ithaca, NY, where she continues to enrich the musical landscape with her family by her side.
