Louisiana State University

• State: Louisiana
• State School (public)
• School Website
• Map Link

Yung-Chiao Wei, bass faculty

• Email Yung-Chiao
• Yung-Chiao’s Website

General Statistics

• US News Ranking: #135 (tie) in National Universities
• US News Overall Score (out of 100): 40
• In-State Tuition & Fees 2016-17: $9,842
• Out-of-State Tuition & Fees 2016-17: $27,005
• Room & Board 2016-17: $11,200
• Total Enrollment: 31,524
• Acceptance Rate (from 2015): 77%
• Student – Faculty Ratio: 23:1
• 4 year graduation rate: 41%
• % of undergrads receiving Financial aid: 45%
• Average Financial Aid: $11,414

Double Bass Statistics

• Average number of undergraduate bass students: 3-5
• Average number of graduate bass students: 5-6
• Studio Class, Orchestral Repertoire Class, Bass Ensembles, Annual Bass Fest with several guest artists

What Alumni Are Doing

• Yu-ling Lee, received full scholarship at the Cincinnati Conservatory for MM and DMA degree and was adjunct instructor at the Cincinnati Conservatory.
• Hsinyi Chiu, was accepted to the Yale University and Eastman School for MM degree. She is now member of the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra in Taiwan.
• John Madere, Principal of the Baton Rouge Symphony, released a CD of his own composition and is an adjunct instructor in the Southeastern Louisiana University.

Perspectives from the Bass Faculty

Q: What are some of your favorite experiences teaching at your school?

A: The beautiful LSU Lake is my artistic inspiration. Sharing and connecting our passion as bassists in the annual Louisiana Bass Fest is always special.

Students receive close attention at LSU. With the weekly lessons, studio classes, chamber music coaching and orchestra rep class, they see me up to 4 times a week. Each student gets their individual plan according to their career goal. Due to my physical disadvantage, I focus most on finding the most effortless way of playing the bass and make sure my students can play without any kind of injury. I found the use of Taichi horse stance, and incorporate yoga and breathing technique into my own playing, and established a warm up routine that serves as a systematic approach to educate our mind and body. My approach is to allow your body to find the most effortless way of playing the bass so that variety of color and imagination can be expressed through creative left hand and expressive right hand technique, leading to achieving the ultimate artistic goal.

About The Bass Faculty

“Bass Players with great technique and supreme artistry are non-existent. Well, there are a few exceptions: the legendary Gary Karr, of course, Eugene Levinson of the New York Philharmonic, and now Yung-Chiao Wei, a young, multi-talented female bassist from Taiwan” reads a recent New York Concert Review of Yung-Chiao Wei’s Carnegie Hall solo recital debut. Yung-Chiao Wei was also praised by The Miami Herald as “a two sided-talent – a competition winning pianist turned double bass virtuoso”. Through her musical insight, breathtaking virtuosity and personality, Wei combines compelling, artistic performances on the double bass with a magical presence in stage.

Wei is the first female bassist performed a solo recital in the Carnegie Hall. Her Carnegie Hall debut garnered tremendous praise from New York Concert Review Inc. Critic Anthony Aibel, who cited “Wei is a phenomenon”. Her performance of Schubert’s Arpeggione Sonata in A minor elicited another mention of praise; Aible affirmed that “nuance on the double bass is hard to accomplish, but Wei plays with subtlety of dynamics, color and expression one seldom, if ever, hears on the bass”.

Wei has performed at major concert halls, prestigious summer festivals, and has given master classes/recitals at major music schools on four continents. She has appeared at Carnegie Hall, Davis Hall, Jordan Hall, Isabella Stewart Garden Museum, Ozawa Hall, Lincoln Center Alice Tully Hall, National Concert Hall (Taiwan), and Izuminomori Hall (Japan). Concerto engagement includes performances with the National Symphony Orchestra in Taiwan, the New World Symphony (FL), Formosa Philharmonic, Louisiana Sinforniatte, and Penang Symphony Orchestra in Malasia. She has been invited to give performances and/or master classes at Opera Bastille for students of Conservatoire De Paris CNSMDP, Eastman School of Music, Boston University, Berlin University of the Arts, Copenhagen Opera House, Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, Interlochen Arts Academy, University of North Texas, University of Michigan, Festival Alfredo de Saint Malo in Panama, Japan Double Bass seminar, Montreal Chamber Music Festival, Taipei University of the Arts, Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, and Shanghai Conservatory in China, among many. She served as a faculty member of the Bowdoin Music Festival in Maine, and was a juror for the International Bassist Society Competition in 2003 and 2015. Wei also serves as the artistic director of the Louisiana Bass Fest.

As a chamber musician, Wei has collaborated with artists such as Leon Fleisher, James Buswell, Joseph Robinson, James Ehnes, and James Sommerville. Her orchestra experience includes serving as principal bassist in the New World Symphony Orchestra (FL) under Michael Tilson Thomas; the New York String Orchestra at Carnegie Hall; Metamorphosen Chamber Orchestra in Boston. Wei has collaborated with pianist Chaoi Chou over 30 years.
Together they have recorded the Chinese violin concerto “Butterfly Lovers” and Brahms 1st Cello Sonata (Centaur Records), and Wei’s transcription on the Elgar Cello Concerto, Brahms 2nd Cello Sonata and new works by Yen and Tommasini.

Wei is a recipient of numerous honors and awards, honors including Awards to Louisiana Artists and Scholars from the Louisiana Board of Regents, the LSU Tiger Athlete Foundation Teaching Award, Taiwan Young Concert Artist Competition, both the 2nd Prize and Audience prize in the Izuminomori International Double Bass/Cello Competition in Japan, the New World Symphony Concerto Competition, two consecutive years the Interlochen Arts Academy Concerto Competition on piano, the Academy’s Young Artist and Fine Arts Award, and first prize in the Taiwan National Music Competition.

A native of Taiwan, Wei began playing the piano at age six and the bass at age twelve. She received her Master of Music degree with honors from the New England Conservatory in Boston and her Bachelor of Music degree with a Performance Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. Her teachers include James VanDemark, Lawrence Wolfe, Stuart Sankey, Jeff Turner, Derek Weller, Peter Dominguez and Claudia Chen. Wei is Professor of Bass at the Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge since 2000.