Li made his orchestral debut with the Xiamen Philharmonic at the age of 9, a year after which he made his solo recital debut in his native Boston. Since then, he has been a recitalist, chamber musician, and concerto soloist. At the age of 11, he made his Carnegie Hall debut, which was featured in the new TV series produced by
NPR,
From the Top. His performance on the
Martha Stewart Show followed two weeks later. Among the orchestras he has soloed with include the
Los Angeles Philharmonic,
Mariinsky Orchestra,
Orchestre National de Lyon,
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin,
St. Petersburg Philharmonic,
Rotterdam Philharmonic,
Cleveland Orchestra,
Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra,
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra,
Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra,
Boston Philharmonic Orchestra,
Brooklyn Philharmonic,
Waltham Symphony Orchestra,
Princeton Symphony Orchestra,
Albany Symphony Orchestra,
Lexington Symphony Orchestra, and
Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Li was awarded first prize in the Massachusetts Music Teachers Association state competitions at the age of 6 and 7. In 2005, Li won second prize in both the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition and the Cincinnati World Piano Competition at the age of nine. In 2008, Li won the second prize in the Gina Bachauer International Piano Junior Artist Competition. In 2010, Li captured first prize in the inaugural
Cooper International Piano Competition Just months after his triumph in Oberlin, George Li captured first prize in the 2010
Young Concert Artists International Auditions. On June 7, 2011, Li performed for President
Barack Obama and
Michelle Obama, German Chancellor Dr.
Angela Merkel and her husband Dr. Joachim Sauer at a state dinner in the
White House Rose Garden. On June 23, 2011, Li was selected to be one of the two recipients of the 2012
Gilmore Young Artist Award. He is currently the youngest recipient of the award. On July 1, 2015, Li won second prize, tied with
Lukas Geniušas, in the XV
International Tchaikovsky Competition. Since then, he has enjoyed a busy international performing career, including recitals, chamber music performances, and appearances with major orchestras in North America, Asia, and Europe. He was one of the four recipients of the 2016
Avery Fisher Career Grant. == Life ==