Yao Feng (Germany)

Dr. Feng, an internationally acclaimed Chinese-German cellist, serves as the principle cellist of the Schleswig-Holstein Symphony Orchestra in Germany. He is the first Chinese Musician in history to hold the position of principal cello in a German orchestra. Additionally, Dr. Feng serves as the guest principle cellist with the China National Center for the Performing Art Orchestra, the Hangzhou (China) Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kiel (Germany) Philharmonic Orchestra, and the South Jutland (Denmark) Symphony Orchestra. Notably, he is the only Chinese recipient of the prestigious “Outstanding Young Artist Award” in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, and holds the title of “Audi Innovative Artist”. Dr. Feng is also the founder of the Europe-China Crescendo International Music Competition and Festival, and he serves as the artistic director of the China Changjiang People’s Art Theater and the New Oriental Jinhua Bilingual International School in China.

Yao Feng began learning the cello at the age of four. He attended the Affiliated Elementary School and Middle School of the Central Conservatory of Music at the ages of 10 and 13. Later, he continued his cello studies at the Detmolt Conservatory of Music and the Dresden Conservatory of Music in Germany, where he earned his master and doctorate degrees. Dr. Feng also received his Master Diploma from the Basel Conservatory of Music in Switzerland. His teachers included Zhengtan Liu, You Zhou, Yuan Chen, Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt, and Ivan Monighetti.

Yao Feng was the top prize winner of the Central Conservatory of Music Cello Competition at the ages of 13 and 15, and the China National Cello Competition at the age of 16. He was also the recipient of the “Best Interpretation of Chinese Music Award” in both Competitions. Dr. Feng was a finalist of the Tchaikovsky International Music Competition in Moscow in 2007. He received numerous awards and scholarships, including the “Best Chamber Music Performance Award” in Sweden, the “Outstanding Young Artist of Magdeburg Award” in Germany, and the “Fu Chengxian Scholarship” in China.

His performance footprint spans across countries and regions including Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, China, Japan, Malaysia, and more. He has collaborated with conductors such as James Levine, Gustavo Dudamel, Mingxun Zheng, Jiri Belohlavek, Mihkel Kütson, Kimbo Ishii, and others. As a soloist, Yao Feng has performed alongside renowned orchestras, including the Dresden Music Academy Symphony Orchestra, the Magdeburg Philharmonic Orchestra, the Hamburg Camerata Orchestra, the Schleswig-Holstein Symphony Orchestra, the South Jutland Symphony Orchestra, the former Shanghai Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the former Taiwan Provincial Symphony Orchestra. In his role as a guest principle cellist, he has shared the stage with orchestras like the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, the Malaysia Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Hangzhou Philharmonic Orchestra.

In 2014, Yao Feng held a solo concert titled “The Most Beautiful Cello Moments” at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. In 2016, He was invited to perform at the New Year’s Concert in the Berlin Philharmonic Hall. The same year, he attended the Changchun International Movie Festival as a guest performer and participated as a special musician in the Salzburg International Music Festival. 

In 2017, he signed with Audi as an innovative artist and recorded for Beijing TV’s “The Real Voice”. in 2019, he was invited to perform at the opening of the festival delle Nazioni International Music Festival in Italy. In early 2022, he held solo concert in Italy. In 2023, Feng Yao's cello solo concerts toured ten cities in China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Jinan, and Xiamen.

In 2015, Feng Yao released his debut album, "When I Met You - Feng Yao's Most Beautiful Cello Moments," and in 2018, he released the online album "When I Met You 2018."