Bio

Twenty-four-year-old violinist Sean Takada is establishing himself on the international stage with performances across the United States, Germany, and Japan. Recent performances include Mozart’s Violin Concerto in A Major, K. 219 with the Philharmonie Baden-Baden under the baton of Heiko Mathias Förster, and the Brahms Violin Concerto with the Augsburger Philharmoniker in Augsburg, Germany.

Sean has received numerous awards, including recognition as an All-Star soloist at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he also received a full scholarship for his undergraduate studies under Professor Movses Pogossian. He was awarded First Prize in the Menuhin–Dowling Music Program Competition, Second Prize from the Pacific Musical Society, and an Honorable Mention from the YoungArts Society. He has also appeared in the Bartók World Competition in Budapest.

His festival appearances include the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, the Carl Flesch Akademie in Baden-Baden, the Tanglewood Music Center, the Zermatt Music Academy in Switzerland, and Collegium Musicum Pommersfelden in Germany, where he served as concertmaster.

He has collaborated with internationally renowned artists in masterclasses, including Boris Kuschnir, Martin Chalifour, Ani Kavafian, Viktor Tretiakov, Andris Nelsons, Thomas Adès, Emanuel Ax, and members of the Juilliard String Quartet.

Born in California, Sean began studying the violin at the age of five through the Suzuki method and later entered the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College Division to study with Bettina Mussumeli. He continued his studies with Li Lin at the Juilliard School Pre-College Division in New York City. He performed as a member of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States, appearing at the BBC Proms and the international Young Euro Classic in Berlin. While completing his bachelor’s degree at UCLA with Professor Movses Pogossian, he also held a permanent position as the youngest member of the Long Beach Symphony.

Sean currently divides his time between the United States and Germany, where he is pursuing his master’s studies at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München under the guidance of Ingolf Turban and Kirill Troussov.

Beyond music, Sean can often be found playing football with friends or exploring the mountains on a hike.