Joel Link burst on the Atlanta music scene when he was chosen First Place Winner of the 1999 Young Artist Competition of the Atlanta Jewish Community Center. Yoel Levi, Music Director Emeritus of the Atlanta Symphony, one of the principal judges, said of Joel, “It is rare to hear someone of that age playing in such a mature way.” The following November, the Center featured him in a concert “Discovering Emerging Artists.” Judith Green, then music critic of the Atlanta Journal Constitution wrote of Joel, “After Joel played, the audience rose, one at a time, seemingly pulled out of their seats by the richness of his sound and the authority of his musical ideas…Joel’s sound…is so warm and generous that you’d never believe the player is 10 or that he is playing a three-quarter violin.” Earlier that year Joel was chosen to be a member of the Disney Young Musicians Symphony Orchestra, and was part of a televised concert at The Lincoln Center in New York City.
In 1997-98 Joel attended the Conservatorio “Joaquin Rodrigo”,where he studied solfege, dictation, and theory. Joel was the youngest member of the conservatory’s semi-professional orchestra, touring throughout Spain and the Philippines.
An exceptionally gifted young artist, Joel made his solo orchestral debut with the Gwinnett (Georgia) Philharmonic performing the Vieuxtemps’ Concerto No. 5 in October, 2000. In December, 2001, Joel was invited to play at the IV VIRTUOSI Music Festival in Pernambuco, Brazil. In March, 2002, Joel was the National First Place winner of the Music Teachers National Association Junior High Strings Competition in Cincinnati, Ohio. In March, 2003, Joel was the 2nd place winner of the prestigious Johansen Triennial International Competition in Washington, D. C. He later performed with the Prince George Philharmonic. In March, 2004, Joel was the First Place winner, as well as the Chamber Prize winner of the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition in London, England, and was featured in The Strad June 2004 issue.
Joel’s chamber trio, the Ottava String Trio, was first prize winner of the Rembrandt Chamber Players Competition in Chicago, Illinois, and was invited to perform at the Opening Gala Celebration honoring Sir Andrew Davis at the new Music Institute of Chicago in Evanston, Illinois. In May, 2003, his chamber trio was also awarded the prestigious Gold Medal at the 30th annual Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition in South Bend, Indiana, and was invited to perform on NPR’s From the Top in October, 2003. Later that month, the Ottava String Trio was invited to give a special performance for the Annual CEO Gathering and Dinner sponsored by the Parthenon Group at the Athenaeum in Boston. In November, 2003, they were also invited to perform at the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts in Chicago, Illinois. In April, 2004, the Ottava String Trio won the Coleman Association “Centennial Award” Grand Prize at the 58th Annual Coleman Chamber Ensemble Competition in Pasadena, California. As part of the Old City String Quartet, Joel recently won the Grand Prize at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, as well as a top prize at the Young Concert Artist Auditions in New York City.
In 2005, Joel was accepted to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he studies with Joseph Silverstein and Pamela Frank. As a student at Curtis, Joel was chosen to be a part of the first “Curtis On Tour” project featuring its president Roberto Diaz. The group travelled all around the United States. Joel served as concertmaster of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra during its 2009-2010 season. During the summer of 2009, Joel attended the Steans Institute for Young Artists at The Ravinia Festival. He is also a participating artist since 2010 at the Marlboro Music Festival.
