Justin Chen is a young Canadian pianist and composer, alumni of Yamaha Music School’s JSAC program. He is currently a student at the Royal Conservatory of Music Taylor Academy and the University of Toronto Schools (UTS), and he has already achieved significant milestones in his musical journey. In recent years, he has won both first and second place at the Canadian Music Competition (CMC) National Finals in the piano category.
Justin’s musical path began at the age of five, when he started piano studies at Yamaha Music School. By age seven, he was composing music, and by age 11, he had earned his Piano ARCT diploma. At 13, he achieved his Piano LRCM diploma. He currently studies piano with Professor Li Wang and has performed in masterclasses for distinguished artists including Hung-Kuan Chen, Jerome Lowenthal, Jeremy Denk, Stewart Goodyear, Anton Nel, Joseph Rackers, Jason Kwak, Dmitri Vorobiev, Elzbieta Wiedner-Zajaz, Makoto Ozone, James Anagnoson, Randall Faber, and Dang Thai Son.
Justin made his Carnegie Hall debut at age eight. The following year, he won the Canadian Music Trophy at the CCC Music Festival and was invited to perform one of his own compositions for Her Imperial Highness, the Princess of Japan, at the Royal Conservatory of Music. At age 11, he was named a GOCAA Young Artist. His other accolades include the Best of Levels (ARCT) Trophy at the Yip’s Music Festival and the David Ouchterlony Memorial Scholarship at the Kiwanis Music Festival as the Most Promising Student. At age 12, he hosted his first solo piano recital in Vancouver.
In 2024, Justin became an OYMI Music Festival Contract Award winner, premiering his original piano concerto with the OYMCO orchestra in June and being invited back in December. That same year, as a first-place winner of the Global Philharmonic Music Competition, he performed at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. In 2025, he attended the Vivace International Music Festival in Wilmington, NC.
In addition to piano, Justin also plays violin and viola, currently studying violin under Dr. Conrad Chow. Beyond music, he enjoys badminton, table tennis, science, coding, and speed cubing.