The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) has announced the appointment of two new string players, both of whom completed the audition process in October 2025. They are violist Jikun Qin (whose appointment begins on April 13, 2026) and second violinist Jasmine Lin (who will arrive on July 6, 2026).
The two players are the fifth and sixth CSO musicians whose appointment has been presided over by Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä, whose tenure will begin in September 2027.
Originally from Toronto, the Canadian-Chinese violinist Jasmine Lin also studied at Juilliard (with Masao Kawasaki) before continuing to the Manhattan School of Music (Nicholas Mann, Sheryl Staples, and Sylvia Rosenberg) and ultimately receiving her doctorate from Rice University (Cho-Liang Lin).
The winner of the 2014 Kocian International Violin Competition, she was also a recipient of the 2018 Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank loan.
She has performed with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Pardubice and has participated in festivals such as the Schiermonnikoog Festival, Toronto Summer Music, Gstaad Menuhin Academy, and Kneisel Hall.
Hailing originally from Shanxi, China, Jikun Qin has been cultivating a career as a substitute musician with orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, and Boston Symphony Orchestra. He is also presently a member of the Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra.
His solo and chamber appearances have taken him to venues across the US, Europe, and Asia, such as Carnegie Hall, David Geffen Hall, Chicago Symphony Center, Boston Symphony Hall, the Kimmel Center, and the Forbidden City Concert Hall.
Qin’s early studies took place at the China Conservatory of Music, and after middle school, he moved to New York, where he continued his studies at the Juilliard Pre-College. He then continued on to The Juilliard School, where his principal teachers included Roger Tapping, Paul Neubauer, Molly Carr, and Cynthia Phelps.