Cellist Zlatomir Fung burst onto the scene as the first American in four decades (and youngest musician ever) to win First Prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition Cello Division. He has since garnered accolades, critical acclaim and standing ovations at performances around the world, more and more widely recognized as one of the preeminent cellists of our time. Astounding audiences with his boundless virtuosity and exquisite sensitivity, the 25-year-old has already proven himself a star among the next generation of world-class musicians.
In the 2024–2025 season, Fung gives recitals in New York City, Boston, and St. Louis, and performs the complete Bach Cello Suites at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Massachusetts and in Arcata, California. He returns to the Aspen Music Festival and makes his debut at the Ravinia Festival. As concerto soloist, he joins the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the San Antonio Philharmonic and the Billings Symphony Orchestra, among others. Internationally, he performs with the Barcelona Symphony in Spain, the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra in Taiwan with Jaap van Zweden conducting, and he returns to the London Philharmonic Orchestra; he also appears in France, Poland, Romania, Korea, Japan, China, and Italy. Fung served as Artist-in-Residence with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for the 2023–2024 season, appearing at London’s Cadogan Hall and touring the UK with the orchestra. Other notable appearances of late include his debuts with the New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Orchestre National de Lille, and BBC Philharmonic, as well as the Baltimore, Dallas, Detroit, Seattle, Milwaukee, Utah, Rochester, and Kansas City Symphonies. Fung made his recital debut at Carnegie Hall in 2021 and was described by Bachtrack as "one of those rare musicians with a Midas touch: he quickly envelopes every score he plays in an almost palpable golden aura.” Other recent highlights include returns to Wigmore Hall and appearances at the Verbier, Dresden, Leoš Janáček International, and Tsinandali Festivals, Cello Biennale Amsterdam, Bravo! Vail, Grant Park Music Festival and the Aspen Music Festival.
In addition to demonstrating a mastery of the canon with his impeccable technique, Fung brings exceptional insight into the depths of contemporary repertoire, championing composers such as Unsuk Chin, Katherine Balch, and Anna Clyne. In 2023, under the baton of Gemma New and with the Dallas Symphony, Fung gave the world premiere of Katherine Balch’s whisper concerto with “jaw-dropping brilliance” (Dallas Morning News) as the dedicatee of the work; he gave its UK premiere February 2024 with the BBC Philharmonic, conducted by Joshua Weilerstein.
A winner of the 2017 Young Concert Artists International Auditions and the 2017 Astral National Auditions, Fung has taken the top prizes at the 2018 Alice & Eleonore Schoenfeld International String Competition, the 2016 George Enescu International Cello Competition, and the 2015 Johansen International Competition for Young String Players, among others. He was selected as a 2016 US Presidential Scholar for the Arts and was awarded the 2016 Landgrave von Hesse Prize at the Kronberg Academy Cello Masterclasses.
Fung was a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship Winner in 2022 and awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2020. As a participant in WXQR’s Artist Propulsion Lab in 2023, he wrote The Elves and the Cello Maker, a radio play in which he also performed. Fung has been featured on NPR’s Performance Today and has appeared six times on NPR’s From the Top. He performs on a circa 1730 cello by Domenico Montagnana, on loan from a generous benefactor. 2024–2025 marks Fung’s first season on the cello faculty at his alma mater, The Juilliard School.