Yi-Wen Jiang, the former second violinist of the Shanghai Quartet, is suing the ensemble for unfair dismissal. Jiang resigned in March after other members of the quartet “objected to social-media comments he had made that were critical of the Chinese regime,” Norman Lebrecht reports on his Slipped Disc blog:
The Shanghai, former resident quartet at the University of Richmond, still performing regularly at UR’s Modlin Arts Center, is currently in residence at Montclair State University in New Jersey and maintains residencies at three Chinese musical institutions.
UPDATE 1 (Sept. 9): The Strad magazine, citing an article in northjersey.com (behind a paywall), reports that Jiang is seeking damages of $500,000. The Shanghai replies that the violinist’s resignation was voluntary and that his lawsuit is “without merit and fanciful:”
UPDATE 2 (Sept. 14): Jiang says his lawsuit is a bid to resuscitate his reputation and career. “I just want my livelihood back to where I was,” he tells Melena Ryzik in an interview published in The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/13/arts/music/shanghai-quartet-lawsuit-china.html
Letter V 