Colin Guan

Cellist Colin Guan is a fourth-year student in the Columbia–Juilliard Exchange Program, studying with Natasha Brofsky at Juilliard while pursuing a major in sociocultural anthropology at Columbia. His playing has been praised for its bold presence and emotional sincerity.

As winner of the San Luis Obispo Symphony Concerto Competition, Colin was invited to perform Dvořák’s Cello Concerto with the San Luis Obispo Symphony for its 60th anniversary season. Colin was also a semifinalist in the XI International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians, and has appeared at venues including Jordan Hall, the Shalin Liu Performance Center, Salle Gilles-Lefebvre, and the Harwood Museum of Art.

A devoted chamber musician, Colin participated in the 2025 Taos School of Music on Tour, performing works by Schumann, Brahms, and Chopin with Taos faculty and alumni across New Mexico. His festival experience includes Kneisel Hall, Taos School of Music, Thy Kammermusikfestival (Denmark), Yellow Barn Young Artists Program, Morningside Music Bridge, and Pacific Crest Music Festival. In New York City, he has served as principal cellist for the Columbia University Bach Society and the Westside Chamber Players.

Equally enthusiastic about contemporary music, Colin worked intensively with Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Tania León on her work Ethos for piano and string quartet. As a performer, he has premiered piano trios by Sofia Ouyang and Max Lu at Alice Tully Hall and has collaborated on semi-improvised chamber music with flutist Craig Goodman and violist Tony Nys. Colin’s first composition, for violin and live electronics, was premiered in 2025 by Che Buford and Yanqi Chen at the Italian Academy of Columbia University.

Teaching has quickly become another of Colin’s passions. He has coached chamber ensembles through Kneisel Hall’s Program for Maine Students and designed music outreach programs for students in Thisted, Denmark. From 2023-2024, Colin was an executive board member of Musical Mentors Collaborative at Columbia, organizing recitals and teaching private cello lessons for students at P.S. 145.

Colin previously studied with Yoshika Masuda and Jamie Kellogg, and has participated in masterclasses with Laurence Lesser, Frans Helmerson, Paul Katz, Hannah Roberts, and Alexi Kenney. In his free time, Colin enjoys exploring the outdoors and cooking for friends.