Mr. Huang is a rising artist... he played with a coppery, wiry bite, and ample vinegar laced his honeyed tone. This gave his sound focus and cut away at the sentimentality, even in the most poignant lyrical passages.

The contours of natural talent, education, and unlimited personal support from his family all blend together for young Taiwanese/American violinist Paul Huang. Beyond that recognizable personality, there is an element of absolute necessity in his playing, making listening to him a gripping experience.

It is a testament to just how persuasive and pedagogically effective Spence has been all these years, pressing the case for new music against aesthetically conservative audiences. The second half of the concert belonged to 24 year-old Taiwanese-American violinist Paul Huang, who dazzled the audience with his commanding tone and confident diction.

The concert's headliner was William Walton's Violin Concerto. Paul Huang, filling in for the originally scheduled soloist Elissa Lee Koljonen, displayed a brilliance that few 23-year-olds can. Huang captured its furiosity while delivering penetrating volume and sparkling technique that would be the envy of violinists twice his age.

The 23-year-old Paul Huang was one of three solosists featured in a gala concert for the 53rd season of Young Concert Artists (YCA). He played the Barber Violin Concerto in a programme with a clarinettist at the beginning and a pianist at the end. It was a joyous testament to what three exceptional talents can achieve before their 25th birthdays. Each seemed ready to take his place on the concert stage as a mature artist.

The Taiwanese-American violinist Paul Huang, a boyish-looking 23, gave a masterly account of Barber’s Violin Concerto. His warm, glowing sound and youthful energy were perfect for the opening movement of this justly popular work, in which a soaring melodic line flows atop the harmonically charged, restless orchestra.