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Jahja Ling () is a conductor,
music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...
director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...
and
pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
. From 2004 to 2017, he was the music director and conductor at the
San Diego Symphony The San Diego Symphony is an American symphony orchestra, based in San Diego, California. The orchestra is resident at Copley Symphony Hall. The orchestra also serves as the orchestra for the San Diego Opera. History On December 6th 1910, th ...
. Following his retirement in 2017, he plans to do guest conducting, as well as teaching and volunteering. He is of Hokkien
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of v ...
descent, formerly an Indonesian citizen and is now an American citizen. He was the first conductor of Chinese descent to serve as music director of a major U.S. orchestra.


Early life

He was born 25 October 1951 in
Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guinea. In ...
and began to play the piano at age 4. He studied at the ''Yayasan Pendidikan Musik'' (Indonesian: Foundation for Musical Education) in
Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
. At age 17 he received a Rockefeller award scholarship and went to study at
The Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. At Juilliard he earned a master's degree, studied piano with Mieczyslaw Munz and conducting with John Nelson. Ling then went to study orchestral conducting at the
Yale School of Music The Yale School of Music (often abbreviated to YSM) is one of the 12 professional schools at Yale University. It offers three graduate degrees: Master of Music (MM), Master of Musical Arts (MMA), and Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), as well as a jo ...
under Otto-Werner Mueller and received a doctor of musical arts degree. He was also a conducting fellow at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute.


Career

Ling served as founding Music Director of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra (1986-1993) and the
San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra (SFSYO) is the youth orchestra of the San Francisco Symphony. The SFSYO performs an annual concert series and has made several recordings. The orchestra rehearses in Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall, dire ...
(1981–84), where Ling served as SFSYO's first Music Director from 1981-1984. He and the SFSYO were selected to perform for Queen Elizabeth II while on a State visit to
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
in 1983. Ling was on the conducting roster of the
Cleveland Orchestra The Cleveland Orchestra, based in Cleveland, is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five (orchestras), Big Five". Founded in 1918 by the pianist and impresario Adella Prentiss Hughes, the orchestra plays most o ...
from 1984–2005, serving as Resident Conductor from 1985-2002. Ling debuted with The Cleveland Orchestra in 1985, and has conducted the orchestra in 32 consecutive seasons. He was also a member of the conducting staff of The Cleveland Orchestra for 20 years, from 1984 to 2005. From 1985 to 2002, he served as Resident Conductor, leading the orchestra in over 400 concerts and over 600 works at Severance Hall, the annual Blossom Festival, and while on tour. During his tenure as Resident Conductor, Ling led the Orchestra's annual concert in downtown Cleveland, heard by more than a million people since first presented in 1990. For 6 seasons, from 2000-2005, Ling served as Music Director of the Blossom Festival and is the last person to have served with that title. From 1988-2002, Ling was Music Director of the
Florida Orchestra The Florida Orchestra is an American orchestra based in the tri-city area of Tampa, Clearwater and St. Petersburg, Florida. It was founded as the Florida Gulf Coast Symphony upon the 1968 merger of the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra and the Ta ...
and brought that orchestra from a community orchestra into one of the finest regional orchestras in the country. Starting in 2004, he was the Music Director of the
San Diego Symphony The San Diego Symphony is an American symphony orchestra, based in San Diego, California. The orchestra is resident at Copley Symphony Hall. The orchestra also serves as the orchestra for the San Diego Opera. History On December 6th 1910, th ...
, with an initial contract for 5 years which later was renewed as Green Contract. In 2014 he announced that the 2016-17 season would be his last. He conducted his final concert as music director in June 2017. His 13-year tenure is the longest in the history of the San Diego Symphony, and he is credited with rebuilding and revitalizing the orchestra. A highlight of his tenure was the orchestra's first-ever appearance at
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th and 57th Streets. Designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill and built b ...
in 2013.


Collaboration with others

In 1980, he was awarded Leonard Bernstein conducting Fellowship and Tanglewood Music Center, where Mr. Bernstein became one of his most influential mentors. In 1987 he made his Cleveland Orchestra debut and has appeared as piano soloist with numerous U.S. and international orchestras. From 1998-2001, he also served as Artistic Director of the Taiwan Philharmonic (then under the name of National Concert Hall Symphony Orchestra) and in 2001 he led the Super World Orchestra in Tokyo, composed of principal musicians from 30 of the world's premier orchestras and broadcast on NHK. In 2009, he also conducted the World Wide Chinese Festival Orchestra including the most accomplished Chinese musicians selected from highest-ranked U.S. and European orchestras. In May 2000, his debut performance with the St. Louis Symphony and cellist
Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma (''Chinese'': 馬友友 ''Ma Yo Yo''; born October 7, 1955) is an American cellist. Born in Paris to Chinese parents and educated in New York City, he was a child prodigy, performing from the age of four and a half. He graduated from ...
was featured on the ABC News program in conjunction with a world premiere performance of a Cello Concerto composed by 20/20 anchor Hugh Downs. Since 1965 he has been volunteering with the Reformed Evangelical Ministry of Dr. Stephen Tong in Jakarta, and in 1978 Tong and Ling co-founded Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International, where he has served as the Vice President. His first performance was conducting Inauguration Concert "Mendelssohn's Symphony no.2 "Lobgesang" and the Others of The Cathedral of Messiah in Jakarta, with his wife, Jessy Chang and Jakarta Oratorio Society on Thursday, September 18, 2008.Reformed Millennium Center Indonesia (RMCI) or the Cathedral of Messiah Team. ''Inauguration Concert: Mendelssohn's Symphony no.2 - Lobgesang and Others''; profile of Jahja Ling, p. 1, Reformed Millennium Center Indonesia (RMCI), Jakarta Under STEMI, he commits himself to visit Aula Simfonia Jakarta at least once a year He still serves as a volunteer Vice President of the Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International (
STEMI A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may t ...
). On June 15, 2012 Ling conducted famous pianist
Lang Lang Lang Lang (; born 14 June 1982) is a Chinese pianist who has performed with leading orchestras in China, North America, Europe, and elsewhere. Active since the 1990s, he was the first Chinese pianist to be engaged by the Berlin Philharmonic, ...
's 30th birthday concert with the Schleswig Holstein Festival Orchestra at O2 World in Berlin which was attended by more than 10,000 people and televised live in German and Spanish TVs. Lang Lang also performed with Ling and the San Diego Symphony at their annual 2012 OPUS Gala and together at a private event.


Guest conductor

He has been guest conductor of all major orchestras in the United States, include the symphony orchestras of Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Minneapolis, New York, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, St. Paul, Washington DC Ling has appeared as guest conductor for most of the prominent orchestras in Asia, Europe and Australia including Adelaide Symphony, the Chamber Orchestra of Lausanne, China Philharmonic in Beijing, Copenhagen Philharmonic, Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Jakarta Symphony Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Macao Symphony Orchestra, Malaysia Philharmonic, MDR Symphony Orchestra in Leipzig, NAtional Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, NDR Radio-Philharmonie in Hanover, NDR Symphony Orchestra in Hamburg, Orchestre Nationale du Capitole de Toulouse, Royal Philharmonic of London, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Shanghai Symphony, Singapore Symphony, Stockholm Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony, Taipei City Symphony, and Tokyo's Yomiuri Nippon Symphony.


Recordings

Mr. Ling's recordings include a range of works on the Telarc, Azica Records, and Continuum labels, featuring recent recording of the works by Bright Sheng with the San Diego Symphony as well as performances by the Florida Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, one of which was nominated for a Grammy award. His performance of the world premiere of
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich Ellen Taaffe Zwilich ( ; born April 30, 1939) is an American composer, the first female composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Her early works are marked by atonal exploration, but by the late 1980s, she had shifted to a postmodernist, ne ...
's Third Symphony with the New York Philharmonic is included in the orchestra's "American Celebrations" collection. Also released is a special edition CD featuring Mr. Ling and the Cleveland Orchestra performing Saint-Saëns' Symphony No. 3 "Organ" for the rededication of the Norton Memorial Organ at Cleveland's Severance Hall.


Achievements and awards

Most of them are adopted and compiled from his official web: In 1968, he won the Jakarta Piano Competition. In 1970 to 1975, he received the John D Rockfefeller 3rd Fund Grant to study at Juilliard. In April 1977, he was awarded the Bronze Medal in the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition (Jerusalem, Israel). In June 1978, he received a Certificate of Honor at the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition (Moscow, Russia). In May 1983 he conducted the San Francisco Symphony Youth Symphony in a special concert honoring
Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
and
Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from ...
. In 1985, he received the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductor's Award and the Leonard Bernstein Conducting Fellowship at Tanglewood. Subsequently, he was selected by
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...
, who became one of his most influential mentors, to be a Conducting Fellow at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute. In 1991, he performed US National Anthem with the Florida Orchestra at
Super Bowl XXV Super Bowl XXV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
with singer star
Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...
which many still hailed as the best rendition of the Anthem. The audio and video of that performance earned platinum record status. In September 2006, The U.S. House of Representatives presented a Congressional Record of his outstanding achievements in the U.S. Capitol. His "Concert in Tribute and Remembrance" with The Cleveland Orchestra for 9/11 received an Emmy award. In 1991 he has been nominated for the Grammy Award for his Telarc CD Recording with Rolf Smedvig and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.


Personal life

His religion is Reformed Protestant; he says that Christianity has mostly inspired him as he is. His conversion happened when he was a teenager, before he went to the US. Since then he has been encouraged and confirmed his vocation by Stephen Tong, his closest spiritual mentor. Jahja Ling also a key person to STEMI (Stephen Tong Evangelical Ministries International), and work closely with Ps. Dr. Stephen Tong, in various Christian Mision. Ling and his first wife, Jane, had two sons, Gabriel and Daniel. She died of cancer in 1998. After the mourning time for 3 years of his first wife's death, he took a second wife in 2001. She is Jessie Chang, a Taiwanese Christian pianist; they have two daughters. Last year, he made the announcement at a meeting with the board of directors, staff and musicians that he planned to leave the organization after the 2016-17 season. He said, "After the 2016-17 season, I look forward to pursuing more international guest conducting, passing on the great musical traditions to the next generation through teach and continuing with my volunteer work in the Christian mission."


References


External links


Jahja Ling's Official WebsiteSan Diego Symphony biography of Jahja LingMinistry of Jahja Ling in Jakarta
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ling, Jahja 1951 births Living people Indonesian conductors (music) Indonesian people of Chinese descent People with acquired American citizenship Juilliard School alumni Yale School of Music alumni American male conductors (music) American musicians of Chinese descent 21st-century American conductors (music) Musicians from Jakarta 21st-century male musicians