Zachary Guo, Age 14, is a first-place winner of the 2019 Sejong Piano Competition in the Junior Division. He began his piano studies at age 5 with Dr. Soo Young Lee, Artist Faculty at the Music Institute of Chicago. Since then, Zachary has given numerous solo recitals, chamber music concerts, and received many musical merits at an early age throughout Chicagoland. He has performed at various concert series such as Merion Concert Series, Noontime Concert Series sponsored by ARK Ensemble and most recently at Copernicus Center of Chicago of sponsored by CAMTA and Chopin Society of Chicago and at the 2019 Thirsty Ears Festival.
Zachary’s success as a performer has led him to be successful in several international competitions, receiving two 2nd prizes from the 6th Annual Carmel-Klavier International Competition in Solo and Concerto Division and 3rd prize at the 2019 Clara Schumann International Competition in the Senior Division. Furthermore, locally he has received first place awards from the North Shore Music Teachers Association, Illinois State Music Teachers
Association, Granquist Competition (Olympic Division) and triple gold medals from CAMTA, NSMTA, and NWSMTA Sonata-Sonatina Festivals. In November, Zachary had an orchestral debut performing the Schumann Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54 with the NEIU Symphony Orchestra as a winner of the 2019 Chicago Chamber Music Festival Concerto Competition. In addition to his solo performances, Zachary loves playing chamber music. He has participated in the 2019 Chicago Chamber Music Festival (CCMF), the Music Institute of Chicago’s Chicago Duo Piano Festival and Chamber Music Program.
Zachary also had the honor of participating in the Piano Master Class of Meng-Chieh Liu of Curtis Institute of Music, Dr. Robert Weirich of UMKC Conservatory, Dr. Svetlana Belsky of University of Chicago and Dr. Garnet Ungar of University of Evansville, IN. Zach participates in the school orchestra, playing the viola. He also sings bass in the St. Luke's Episcopal Church Choir. He enjoys running and is on the Shepard Cross Country team. He is also interested in cooking, baking, and reading books as well as poetry.