Charis Shing

Charis Shing is a sophomore at Parkway West High School and is entering her fourth season with the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra. She began studying the violin at the age of four and currently studies with Ms. Joo Kim of the SLSO.  

At the age of ten, Shing made her solo debut with the Alton Symphony Orchestra as the recipient of the Deborah Fox Guild Award. Since then, she has appeared as a soloist with the Town and Country Symphony Orchestra, University City Orchestra, the Webster University Community Music School’s (CMS) Young People’s Symphonic Orchestra, and Belleville Philharmonic Orchestra. Most recently, she won the Florence Frager Young Artist Competition and performed with the St. Louis Civic Orchestra in April 2026.  

Shing won the Music Teachers National Association’s (MTNA) Missouri Junior Strings Competition in 2023 and 2024. In 2025, after winning the MTNA West-Central Division Junior Strings Competition, she advanced to the National Finals.  

An avid chamber musician, Shing has participated in the CMS Preparatory Program for the past three years, receiving a full scholarship for the 2024–2025 season. During the 2025–2026 season, she was a member of the Hermosa Quartet, which advanced to the quarterfinals of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. Shing was also named a 2024–2025 RADAR Young Artist by the Chamber Music Society of St. Louis  

Shing is deeply grateful to Joo Kim, Annette Burkhart, Vera Parkin, Laura Holzen, Rebecca Pantano, Ed Sandheinrich, and especially her parents for their support throughout her musical journey.