Shawn Cheng

Taiwanese-Canadian pianist and composer Shawn Chang has created a career of distinction.

In the 2023-24 season, Chang joined the Staatsoper Stuttgart as a Studio Pianist, with his position continuing through the 2025-26 season. He was previously featured in the Merola Opera Program in 2022, where he won the Schwabacher Recital audition. In 2020, he was recognized as a Schwab Rising Star of the Caramoor Music Festival in Katonah, New York, and frequently appeared alongside pianist Steven Blier in concerts presented by the New York Festival of Song at the Kaufman Music Center. Recently, Chang performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and returned to Carnegie Hall in 2024 with his longtime duo partner, mezzo-soprano Erin Wagner.

As a composer, Chang’s works have been premiered by prominent New York-based vocal ensembles, including Chromatic Voice Exchange and Schola Sine Nomine, as well as by acclaimed singers like Daniel McGrew, Laura Strickling, and Erin Wagner. His song Blue won the commission prize from Sparks & Wiry Cries in 2022. Another commissioned work, Us Now, premiered at the January 2022 SongSlam festival. Chang was also a finalist for the National Association of Teachers of Singing’s 2023 Art Song Award. His most recent scenic work Mlarben-Plak was commissioned by the State Opera Theater of Stuttgart.

Chang studied collaborative piano at The Juilliard School under Lydia Brown. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Kenneth Merrill. Since 2019, Chang has been the soloist in a series of concertos with The Orchestra of The Bronx, including a notable performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, which was praised for its emphasis on the piece’s “melodic, lyrical aspect… It was a beautiful performance…” (The Riverdale Press).