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Jimmy Shiu

At the tender age of 18, Zhang Aozhe, the 2025 winner of the Premio Paganini International Violin Competition’s top prize, has just made his Hong Kong debut. This should have been a major attraction, but from my observation, the seats at the City Hall Concert Hall were about half empty.
Was the low attendance due to the summer holidays, or was it a case of insufficient publicity? It was difficult to tell, but the truth is that many people, including frequent concertgoers, missed a show that deserved more appreciation than it received from a small audience that included many children.
Zhang was born in Hefei, in China’s Anhui province, in 2008, and recorded his first solo album at 14.
His wins at the 2025 Premio Paganini International Violin Competition – where he took the Gold Prize and Best Paganini Concerto Performance Prize – are his most distinguished accolades to date. Previous winners of the competition include Salvatore Accardo and Gidon Kremer.

The recital programme in Hong Kong was a mix of works for solo violin, sandwiched by two sonatas for piano and violin. The pianist was Xie Beini, associate professor of piano at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.
The concert began with an articulate and spirited performance of Mozart’s “Sonata in A major, K. 305”. The lightness one usually expects in the first movement was missing, however; the tone was as serious as Zhang looked on stage. In fact, he seldom made eye contact with the audience throughout the show.
The stage was all Zhang’s when it came to the next set: Ysaye’s “Sonata No. 5” and two caprices by Paganini. Zhang’s interpretation of the sonata was magical. One distinct feature of the piece is its abundance of overlapping lines and layers. Zhang showed his intuition for the contrapuntal texture, and his performance was poetic and full of dynamic contrasts.
Paganini’s works are noted for being intensely difficult. Of course, Zhang’s technique was near perfect. With these two caprices (“No 7” and “No 24”), both comprising multiple sections, he showed delicate phrasing and showcased the full spectrum of musical expression.
Next, Zhang and Xie took on Beethoven’s grand “Kreutzer Sonata” – the longest, most complicated and symphonic among Beethoven’s 10 violin sonatas. The two musicians showed a good understanding of the form, the starkly contrasting musical ideas and the subtle dynamic changes, and delivered the piece with a broad range of expression.
Although some audience members were thrilled by Zhang and Xie, the applause was generally polite, save for one or two shouts of “Bravo”. The duo instantly returned with a free and witty encore of Kreisler’s “Tambourin Chinois”, which the audience loved.
The second encore was Gershwin’s “Bess, You Is My Woman Now” from the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess. While others might have been tempted to overplay the piece’s blues and spiritual influences, Zhang showcased his flawless technique and the velvet-like sound – especially at the high positions on the lowest G string – of his 1937-made Ansaldo Poggi violin.
The final encore was special. Three young violinists – Evangeline Wong (15), Eleanor Wong (12) and Jamie Wong (13) – joined Zhang in the first movement of Vivaldi’s “Concerto for Four Violins in B minor”.

While leaving City Hall, I felt lucky to have been in the audience. The three Wongs were even luckier. How lovely, even life-changing, to share the stage with a Premio Paganini Competition winner! They all played very well. Jamie was also Xie’s page-turner. I have never seen the job so nicely done by a youngster in full concert attire.
“The Magic of Violin – International Violin Competition ‘Premio Paganini’ Winner Aozhe Zhang Violin Recital”, Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall. Reviewed: August 25.


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The Premio Paganini winner played Beethoven, Mozart, Vivaldi and more with flawless technique in a show that deserved a higher turnout


The Premio Paganini winner played Beethoven, Mozart, Vivaldi and more with flawless technique in a show that deserved a higher turnout.


World of performing arts

Hong Kong

Classical music

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.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Premio Paganini winner played Beethoven, Mozart, Vivaldi and more with flawless technique in a show that deserved a higher turnout

The Premio Paganini winner played Beethoven, Mozart, Vivaldi and more with flawless technique in a show that deserved a higher turnout