Violinist Sean Mori loves the challenge of Tchaikovsky’s beloved concerto

Sean Mori, violin

The violin cast an early spell on Sean Mori, who began taking lessons at age 3 after seeing a violinist in concert in San Francisco.

He doesn’t recall the exact details of that first experience, but he remembers the feeling: “I thought it looked cool. I wanted to play the violin,” he said. His parents listened, got him into lessons, and two years later, he gave his first solo performance.

Sean, 16, lives in Palo Alto, Calif., with his parents Takeshi and Sachiko, and younger sister Jennifer, 13, who studies the cello; neither of their parents are musicians. Sean does high-school coursework through the School of Independent Learners in Los Altos, and attends the Pre-College Program at the SF Conservatory.

He enjoys bicycle riding for a hobby, and though he admits it’s a little bit dangerous, he finds it “a good way to let off steam.”

Sean says he says he is drawn to the way music, and especially the violin, can express emotion and stories, particularly in the towering Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto, which he will perform with Maestro Stephen Paulson and Symphony Parnassus at 3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 27, at the Taube Atrium Theater in San Francisco. (Purchase Tickets)

“Tchaikovsky had the ability to put in all these different colors and conflicts, and it has so many difficult emotions intertwined,” he said.   

His appearance with Symphony Parnassus marks the first time Sean has performed with an orchestra. He is a 2018 winner of the Symphony Parnassus / San Francisco Conservatory of Music Concerto Competition.

“It’s a great honor to be selected to play,” he said. “It’s a big risk to bring in someone who has never performed the Tchaikovsky concerto with an orchestra before. I’m honored that they had the trust in me.” 

Though it’s his first time performing as soloist with an orchestra, he’s no stranger to the concert stage, having played throughout the world, from Prague to New York to Japan, and is a scholarship student of Ian Swensen and Elbert Tsai at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

This past year, he was a quarter-finalist in the under-15 division of the 2018 International Menuhin Competition in Geneva, Switzerland. He has won many first-place prizes as well: the United States International Music Competition, DVC/HNU Young Artist String Competition, Pacific Musical Society competition, Galante Music Festival, Nova Vista Concerto Competition, and was invited to perform at Steinway Society of the Bay Area’s Young Artists Concert.

Sean admits to being “a little nervous” about his upcoming performance with Symphony Parnassus, but looks forward to “showing people what I can do.”