Biography

Texas-born, Taiwanese-American cellist Ashley Wang is the Grand Prize in Strings and Audience Choice winner of the 2025 Moores School of Music Concerto Competition. She received her Bachelor of Music from the University of Texas at Austin studying with Bion Tsang as well as a Master of Music from the University of Houston where she served as the Teaching Assistant under Dr. Eunghee Cho. She is currently continuing in her assistantship at the university while pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts with a minor in collaborative piano with Timothy Hester.

Ashley attended the Orford Music Academy where she worked with Laurence Lesser and Natasha Brofsky, and has performed in masterclasses for other distinguished pedagogues including Ronald Leonard and Paul Katz. Her festival appearances include Heartland Chamber Music Festival, Montecito International Music Festival, and the Classical Music Institute’s 210 Festival, and she has collaborated on stage with such artists as Joan Kwuon, Francisco Fullana, Formosa Quartet, and The Orchestra San Antonio. She has also won the inaugural 2025 Moores School of Music String Area Baroque/Classical Concerto Competition. 

Ashley has served as principal cellist for the Moores School Symphony Orchestra, Opera Orchestra, Cello Ensemble, and AURA Contemporary Ensemble. She has participated in masterclasses with renowned cellists such as Laurence Lesser, Mark Kosower, Ronald Leonard, Robert DeMaine, and Paul Katz, Desmond Hoebig and received chamber music coaching from the Harrington, Miró, and Formosa Quartets. In May 2016, she toured Prague, Vienna, and Budapest as associate principal cellist with the WTAMU Symphony Orchestra. 

Ashley is one of the few teachers in Houston that is fully qualified to teach Suzuki Cello books 1-5 after completing Suzuki Teacher training with Dr. Alice Ann O’Neill, Dr. Andrea Yun, Dr. Shu-Yi Scott, and Abbey Hansen. She spent three years on the faculty at UT teaching in the pre-college music program, UT String Project. She strongly believes in encouraging her students to become the best they can be in a healthy and productive learning environment. Ashley has had 12+ years of experience teaching different ages ranging as young as 3 years old to adults. Her lessons include injury prevention, personalized guidance especially with technique, and the exploration of musical ideas, empowering students to fully express themselves. Currently, she is a faculty member at the Paganini School of Music, fostering a vibrant cello studio and inspiring young musicians.

Ashley is equally passionate about both performing and teaching music. In addition to her passion for the cello, Ashley loves crafting, exploring new recipes, eating Asian food, and immersing herself in diverse cultures through travel.

Updated: May 2026