Hailed as "prodigiously talented" (Washington Post) and praised for her "freedom, mastery and fantasy" (La Libre, Belgium), Sydney native Susie Park first picked up a violin at age three, made her solo debut at five, and, by fifteen, had performed with every major orchestra in her country. Park has grown into a musician distinguished by unusual passion and versatility, and today performs internationally as an orchestral, chamber, and solo artist.
Park's international career was launched at age 16, when she took first place in the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition in France. This led to performances and re-engagements throughout the US, Europe, and her native Australia, where highlights include performances for crowds of over 135,000. Park went on to receive additional top prizes at the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis and the Wieniawski Competition in Poland.
Park has since concertized around the world, soloing and touring with European orchestras including the Vienna Symphony, Orchestre National de Lille, and the Royal Philharmonic; American orchestras including the Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Indianapolis Symphonies; Korea's KBS Orchestra; Orchestra Wellington in New Zealand; and all major symphony orchestras in Australia. Working with conductors including Simon Rattle, Hans Vonk, Alan Gilbert, Fabio Luisi and Yehudi Menuhin, Park has performed in venues ranging from New York’s Carnegie and Alice Tully Halls, Boston's Symphony Hall, Chicago's Millennium Park, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, Washington's Smithsonian Institute, Vienna's Musikverein, Cologne's Philharmonie, Düsseldorf's Tonhalle, and the Sydney Opera House.
“Especially haunting...moving, persuasive performance” -New York Times.
Park, formerly the violinist of the Eroica Trio from 2006 to 2012, recorded the ensemble’s eighth CD; an all-American Grammy-nominated album, and toured internationally with the trio in countries including Germany, Denmark, New Zealand and Austria. She was also a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Two, collaborating with artists such as Wu Han, Gary Hoffman and Ida Kavafian. For three consecutive summers she attended the Marlboro Music Festival, and has appeared on numerous Musicians from Marlboro tours. Park has performed chamber music with members of the Guarneri, Juilliard, Emerson, and Cleveland Quartets, as well as Kim Kashkashian, Pamela Frank, Jason Vieaux, Cho-Liang Lin, and Jaime Laredo. Her festival engagements include Music from Angel Fire, Music in the Vineyards, Napa, the Seattle, Caramoor, Skaneateles, Aspen, Ravinia, Portland Maine, Portland Oregon, Bowdoin and Salt Bay festivals in the US; Open Chamber Music at Prussia Cove in England; Bermuda Festival; the Mozarteum Sommerakademie in Austria; and Keshet Eilon in Israel. She regularly performs with Accordo, a chamber music ensemble comprising principal string players from the Minnesota Orchestra and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.
"Park plays with a sweet, acutely focused tone, and her mix of musical elegance and bristling virtuosity fits her colleagues' style like a well-tailored glove." -Miami Herald.
Park was appointed first associate concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra in 2015, and has served as guest concertmaster of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra as well as the Pittsburgh, Seattle and Indianapolis Symphonies. She is also a founding member of ECCO, the East Coast Chamber Orchestra, a conductorless chamber orchestra based upon democratic principles, whose focus is to be purely on music-making and comprises some of the most talented young chamber musicians, soloists and principal string players in major American orchestras. Translating this diversity of experience and virtuosity into a unified ensemble approach, ECCO combines the strength and power of an orchestral ensemble with the personal, intimate nature of chamber music. In 2012, ECCO released a recording of fresh takes on some of the most popular and compelling music from three different centuries. The virtuosity and spirit of the music-making soar on this self-titled debut album of beloved works by Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Geminiani, released on the eOne label.
“A world-class artist, the US-based Australian’s sweet-toned, finely balanced violin playing was the highlight...” -The Australian
Other recent highlights include being a jury member for the Michael Hill International Violin Competition in New Zealand; being on faculty of the Bowdoin International Music Festival; being on the faculty of the Cuban American Youth Orchestra, touring her home country as guest first violinist of the Australian String Quartet which prompted the The Australian to publish a review headlined "Australian String Quartet proof Susie Park's one we let get away;" touring India and the UK with the Australian World Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Mehta, and joining the Enso String Quartet as first violinist for their final season.
“switching from spiky to lush and back with fearless verve, flair and energy...compelling and genuinely moving” -Sydney Morning Herald
Park's diverse musical interests have also led to collaborations with artists such as trumpeter Chris Botti, with whom she performed 41 consecutive shows at the Blue Note jazz club in New York.
Park holds degrees from the Curtis Institute and the New England Conservatory; her principal teachers include Jaime Laredo, Ida Kavafian, Donald Weilerstein, Miriam Fried, Shi-Xiang (Peter) Zhang, and Christopher Kimber.
She plays a J.B. Guadagnini violin made in 1740, once featured in a documentary of which Park herself was a subject.
Park enjoys knitting, garment design and other creative arts.
