Violinist Michael Shih became concertmaster of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra in 2001. A Naumburg International Violin Competition prizewinner and Presidential Scholar in the Arts, he has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician in the United States, Taiwan, and internationally. He was first violinist of the Whitman Quartet from 1992 to 2002. In 2007 he premiered Kevin Puts's Violin Concerto with the Fort Worth Symphony.