Violin Solo/Duet Recital

Dr. MEI MEI WEI has performed extensively throughout the United States, Europe, Australia and Asia as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestra concertmaster. She appeared as soloist with many orchestras such as the Phoenix Symphony, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, the New York Chamber Orchestra, Shanghai Baroque Chamber Orchestra etc. She has played chamber music with world -class artists such as Shmuel Ashkenasi, Alexander Shtarkman, Kevork Mardirossian, Dennis Park and was invited to play chamber music with Vermeer Quartet at the summer music festival in Maine.

Mei Mei Wei was a winner of the Artists International Violin Competition in New York, where she was invited to play solo recital at Carnegie Hall. Her performance was “highly praised” by the New York Concert Review.

She has recently performed solo recitals and chamber music tours with her daughter Lily Wei Ye in Germany, Spain, Australia, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, and other countries as well.

Mei Mei Wei held the positions of Associate Concertmaster of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, and First Violin Section of the Phoenix Symphony. Currently she is also Concertmaster/Artistic Director/Soloist of Four Seasons Chamber Orchestra in Washington DC.

Mei Mei Wei earned her bachelor’s degree at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, masters degree at the University of Southern California, and a doctor of musical arts degree at Louisiana State University. She was on the faculty of Louisiana State University, The Colburn School of Music, the Idyllwild Summer Music Festival in California, the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and the Music School of East China Normal University. Her violin studies have been with Shu Zheng Tan, Shumel Ashkenasi, Kevork Mardirossian and Eduard Schmieder.

After returning to China, where she resided from 2008-2020, she was invited to teach at the Shanghai Conservatory and China East Normal University. At the same time she was appointed as Music Director, Soloist, and Concertmaster of the Shanghai Baroque Chamber Orchestra. Over those 12 years, she successfully led the orchestra, playing at the most renowned concert halls in China, where she has gained popularity among Chinese audiences. Under her leadership, the orchestra has become one of the best chamber orchestras in China. In recognition of her achievements, she was selected as a “Specially Recruited Expert”, under the prestigious “Thousand People Plan”, sponsored by the Chinese government. As well, in celebration of its’ 75th Anniversary, the People’s Republic of China named Mei Mei Wei an “International Cultural Role Model”.

Every summer she teaches at the Manhattan International Music Festival in Shanghai China where she is the Artistic Director and violin faculty member. She also teaches at the Montecito International Music Festival in California and Euro Music Festival & Academy in Poland. She gave violin master classes around the world such as Sydney Conservatory, Chugye University for the Art in Seoul and Louisiana State University etc. She currently resides in Rockville Maryland with her husband Philip Reynolds and her daughter Lily Wei Ye.

LILY WEI YE was born in Phoenix, Arizona. She is the daughter of Mei Mei Wei. She was introduced to the violin when she was six years old. In 2008, Lily moved to Shanghai and attended Concordia International School Shanghai, graduating in 2013. She participated in Concordia's APAC string festivals and became one of the soloists in her senior year.

Lily attended the Meadowmount School of Music in Westport, New York during the summers of 2012 to 2015. She won first prize in the Hong Kong International Youth Music Competition in 2015. In the same year, she placed second at the 19th International Violin Competition in Bari, Italy. In 2016, Lily attended the New York International Music Competition and Festival in Taiwan and received Gold.

Lily also attended the Aspen Music Festival in summer of 2017 and studied with Cornelia Heard and Naoko Tanaka. She graduated with her Bachelor Degree at the New School's Mannes College of Music. Lily recently received her Dual Masters Degree both in Classical Violin Performance and in Music Education at the Manhattan School of Music and Columbia University’s Teacher College respectively. She has played in the Lincoln Center and made her solo debut at Carnegie Hall in 2019. She has performed solo recitals at the UN Headquarters in NYC，The Shanghai Oriental Arts Center and Shanghai Ploy Grand Theatre since then. As a soloist, she also toured in Boston, New Orleans, North Carolina and other cities in U.S as well as South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan and other countries in Asia. Early 2020, She was invited to play as a soloist with New York Chamber Players Orchestra at the Cary Hall of DiMenna Center in Manhattan.

Currently she is music teacher and teaching in Washington DC and at the same time she is doing her PHD in music at Columbia University. Lily is also Co-Concertmaster of Four Seasons Chamber Orchestra in Washington DC and Assistant Artist-Director of the Manhattan International Music Festival where she teaches and plays both solo and chamber music with world-class musicians.

THOMAS PANDOLFI is one of the leading pianists of our time, hailed a ''phenomenon'', he began his career early on while at The Juilliard School (BM & MM).Since then he has been an audience favorite, selling out the world's most prestigious stages, including Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, Strathmore, The Kennedy Center, Kiev Opera House, Bucharest's Athenaeum and London's Cadogan Hall.Mr. Pandolfi is a Steinway Artist, and his latestrecording is the world premiere of Polo Piatti'sBohemian Concerto for Piano and Orchestra with The National Symphony Orchestra of London conducted by John Andrews. During the 2025/26 season, Mr. Pandolfi's busy concert touring schedule will continue worldwide.

Dr. YAO LIN earned her Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree from the University of Maryland, studying under Larissa Dedova. She began her early training at the Odessa State Conservatory in Ukraine, where she studied with Soviet piano pedagogues A.A. Krasotov and A.M. Koncharov, graduating with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees with honors.

As an internationally active pianist, Dr. Lin has performed at prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. She has received numerous awards from competitions including the American International Piano Competition and the Northern Illinois University Concerto Competition. She also toured China with William Goldenberg, presenting masterclasses and concerts in various cities.

Dr. Lin Yao's contributions to the field of musical arts have been widely recognized. In 2017, she received an official citation from the Maryland State Legislature for her outstanding contributions to the local arts community. She served as the pianist for the 2018 Wang Liping Works Concert in the DMV area, accompanied the 1,000-voice chorus on World Culture Day in 2023, and performed in the 2025 New Year Concert at Strathmore alongside Dai Yuqiang, Tai Ji, and the Washington Philharmonic Orchestra.

In music education, Dr. Lin is dedicated to nurturing young musical talents. In 2022, she founded the Grace School of Music, where she trains students who have gone on to win awards in international, national, and state-level competitions. She has also served as a judge for the Chicago Chinese Music Festival Youth Piano Competition and frequently collaborates as a pianist in major music events.

Dr. Lin is fluent in Russian, English, and Chinese, and is highly skilled at teaching in multilingual environments.

Info: Mei Mei Wei has performed extensively throughout the United States, Europe, Australia and Asia as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestra concertmaster. She appeared as soloist with many orchestras such as the Phoenix Symphony, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, the New York Chamber Orchestra, Shanghai Baroque Chamber Orchestra etc. She has played chamber music with world -class artists such as Shmuel Ashkenasi, Alexander Shtarkman, Kevork Mardirossian, Dennis Park and was invited to play chamber music with Vermeer Quartet at the summer music festival in Maine.

Mei Mei Wei was a winner of the Artists International Violin Competition in New York, where she was invited to play solo recital at Carnegie Hall. Her performance was “highly praised” by the New York Concert Review.
She has recently performed solo recitals and chamber music tours with her daughter Lily Wei Ye in Germany, Spain, Australia, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, and other countries as well.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Bethesda Presbyterian Church, 7611 Clarendon Road, Bethesda, United States