Eva Tao is a violinist and a doctoral candidate at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where she studies under the guidance of Professor Mark Kaplan. Originally from China, Eva earned her bachelor’s degree from the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, studying with Zhang Ti, and her master’s degree from the Jacobs School of Music. She minored in Baroque violin performance, receiving tutelage from Ingrid Matthews and Stanley Ritchie. Her musical journey has also been enriched by working with esteemed mentors such as Victor Danchenko, Itzhak Rashkovsky, Petru Munteanu, Qian Zhou, Dong-Suk Kang, and Sungju Lee.
Eva’s talent has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards. She won the Gold Prize at the Virtuoso International Music Awards, the Third Prize at the France Music Competition, the Second Prize at the International Mozart Competition, and many others. She has been honored with the China National Scholarship for two consecutive years.
As a founding member of the Luft String Quartet, Eva has performed at notable events such as the 20th Harvard College China Forum Concert, the Confucius Institute Concert, and the European Institute for One Belt One Road Economic and Cultural Cooperation and Development Concert. Her festival appearances include the Beijing Music Festival, International String Music Festival, Singapore Violin Festival, and Britt Music Festival, and Lake George Music Festival.
She has served as a substitute violinist with China National Symphony Orchestra, National Ballet of China Symphony Orchestra, and Henan Symphony Orchestra. Currently, she holds the position of Assistant Principle Second Violin in Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, the Assistant Concertmaster II in the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, and serves as a section violinist in Owensboro Symphony, and Columbus Indiana Philharmonic.