Toronto, ON. February 20, 2008 —Wunderkind piano virtuoso Yundi Li is a household name in China and one of the hottest new superstars worldwide. Dubbed “The Poet of the Keyboard,” he is described by Musical America as “one of the greatest talents to surface in years – nay decades.” He returns to Roy Thomson Hall on Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 8:00 p.m. for his 2nd solo recital. Two years ago his sensational sold-out Roy Thomson Hall recital debut had the audience clamoring for more and the critics raving: “Li’s technique is magical…a player with personality, much like superstars of yore like Horowitz and Rubinstein.” – Toronto Star. His upcoming program includes works by Chopin, Liszt and Mussorgsky’s powerhouse Pictures At An Exhibition.

Yundi Li was propelled to international fame when he won first prize at the 2000 International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland at the age of 18. Born in Chongqing, China in October 1982, he was the youngest-ever and the first competitor in 15 years to be awarded the coveted gold medal. This prestigious win led to an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon (DG). In reviewing his sixth and most recent DG recording, The New York Times declared his playing “fabulous…astounding,” of Prokofiev’s Second Concerto and Ravel’s Concerto in G Major with the Berlin Philharmonic under maestro Seiji Ozawa. His first album, a Chopin disc, went platinum. The New York Times named his second album, Yundi Li Plays Liszt, as Best of the Year for 2003; and Gramophone Magazine described his third album of Chopin scherzos and impromptus, as "stunning playing...powerful, punctilious and heroic." His fourth release, Vienna Recital, was recorded live at Vienna's Musikverein, and his fifth album is a best-selling CD of the First Piano Concertos of Chopin and Liszt.

Since his North American concerto debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra in July 2003, Yundi Li has appeared as soloist with many of the world’s major orchestras, including the Israel Philharmonic, Hong Kong Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, and the Budapest Festival Orchestra. He has also toured with many orchestras, including the Moscow Philharmonic in Germany under Yuri Simonov, the Dresden Staatskapelle under Paavo Järvi, the Verbier Festival Orchestra under James Levine, the New Japan Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, the Leipzig Gewandhaus under Riccardo Chailly, and the Vienna Symphony in Japan under Fabio Luisi. Solo recitals continue to take Yundi Li to most major cities in Asia, Europe and North America where he continues to dazzle his growing legion of fans and inspire rave reviews.