Born in China, Raised in Russia, Xiao-Dan (Helen) Zheng became appointed Principal Cellist of the Tucson Symphony Orchestra in 2009. Ms. Zheng is a graduate of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, the Juilliard School, and the University of Southern California. Since winning her first job with the Long Beach Symphony in 2006, Xiao-Dan has gone on to join the New West Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony, and was a regular sub with the San Diego Symphony and Los Angeles Opera.
Ms. Zheng has collaborated in chamber music concerts with violinist Itzhak Perlman, soloed under the baton of violinist/conductor Pinchas Zukerman. She went on tour with renowned Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, and with pianist Zade Dirani under the patronage of Queen Noor of Jordan.
Xiao-Dan is an alumna of Verbier Music Festival (Switzerland), Pacific Music Festival (Japan), Young Artist Programme (Canada), Beijing International Music Festival (China), The Perlman Music Program (New York/Tel Aviv/Shanghai), Bawdoin Music Festival (Maine), the New York Strings Seminar, and Tanglewood Music Festival.
While commuting between L.A. and Tucson during her TSO season, Ms. Zheng has managed to keep her involvement with Hollywood. She was a cellist on the re-make of feature film FAME (2009), Fox Golden Globe winner TV series GLEE (season 1, episode.7), Placido Domingo: Celebrating 40 Years in Los Angeles (TV 2008), and Jimmy Kimmel Live show with singer Katie Melua (UK). Her cello solos in feature film Purity (2006), composed by George Shaw won a gold medal for the "Most Musical Impact on Film" at Park City Film Festival (Utah). Xiao-Dan has also recorded albums for Joe Cocker, Ronnie Wood, and Justin Timberlake on SNL.
In her spare time, Helen is a trained and certified massage therapist specializing in Musician Therapy providing knowledge and advice for her colleagues in L.A. and Tucson. Her long-term goal is to obtain a Doctorate degree in Physical Therapy and work with musicians nationwide to reduce pain and injuries caused by repetitive soft tissue overuse.