Biography

Hailed by The Boston Globe for his “subtle, graceful virtuosity” and described as a “Vietnamese Guitar Virtuoso” by Austin Classical Guitar, guitarist An Tran continues to impress audiences with his innate musicality and dynamic artistry. In recent seasons, An has been invited to perform recitals at international concert stages such as the Guitar Society of Toronto, Córdoba Guitar Society, Segovia Classical Guitar Series, New Orleans International Guitar Festival, Latin- American International Guitar Festival, Bangkok Guitar Society, and Hanoi International Guitar Festival, among others.

Building on the momentum of his numerous successes, An signed a recording contract with Naxos and released the album “Napoléon Coste: Guitar Works, Vol. 6” in June 2023. His performance received acclaim from the American Record Guide, which praised his “immaculate ornaments and cultivated sense of phrasing”. His debut album, entitled “Stay, My Beloved”, was included in the 2020 "Recordings of the Year" by Chicago Tribune and was praised by Classical Guitar Magazine as “an unforgettable journey to a world you’ve probably never been to” with “highly virtuosic passages that display what a gifted guitarist An Tran truly is”. Released on Frameworks Records (Sony Orchard) in April 2020, the album features all Vietnamese guitar music, portraying different elements of Vietnamese traditional music and original compositions by Vietnamese composers. It was described by the Guitar Foundation of America’s Soundboard Magazine as “deeply moving music at its best” and praised for “Tran’s sense of space, touch, and mood is exquisite”.

An Tran has been featured in many radio, podcast, newspaper and television programs by Performance Today, Classical Guitar Alive!, Tonebase Podcast, Vietnam Airlines’ Heritage Magazine and Vietnam Television (VTV) among numerous others. He has won over a dozen international guitar competitions and music awards, including top prizes from Berlin International Guitar Competition, New Orleans International Guitar Competition, and Society of American Musicians Guitar Competition to name a few.

After leaving the Vietnam National Academy of Music, An Tran received his B.A in Music from North Park University (Chicago), where he studied with Julie Goldberg and Tom Zelle. In 2019, An was presented with the university’s Distinguished Young Alumni Award. An received his Master of Music, along with the Southeast Asia Studies Fellowship from Yale University, studying with Benjamin Verdery. He received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree with the Program Honors at Northwestern University, studying with Anne Waller.

An Tran is the guitar professor at Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts, University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) and Northern Illinois University (NIU), where he established the NIU International Guitar Concert Series and serves as a faculty affiliate at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies. He is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Chicago Artopia, a nonprofit organization dedicated to making art accessible to everyone on the Southwest side of Chicago. He also serves as a board member of the Chicago Classical Guitar Society. An Tran is a D’Addario Artist and is managed by Jean Schreiber Management. An performs on guitars made by Stephan Connor in Boston, USA. Follow An on Instagram/Facebook @antranguitar. Concert dates and more information can be found at www.antran.org.