It has been nearly four years since pianist Kuok-Wai Lio last visited the University of Kansas.

This time, at only 19 years old, he is making his American professional orchestra debut as a piano soloist with the Kansas City Symphony, which will perform at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Lied Center.

Lio and the symphony are performing because Frank Byrne, symphony executive director, said he wanted to introduce college students to professional orchestral music.

“That’s part of the long-term goal — just as every college experience includes major works of literature, it should include exposure to great works of music,” Byrne said.

Byrne said the symphony had appeared at other colleges in the region, including Kansas State University and the University of Central Missouri.

Lio began playing the piano at age 5 when his older brother, who attended Juilliard School, taught him how to play. Lio now attends the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, which accepts only 160 students each year, according to the school’s Web site.

In the summer of 2004, Lio spent four weeks at the University’s International Institute for Young Musicians and studied music with piano students from around the world. He spent part of the time working with Jack Winerock, professor of piano.

“He is very devoted to what he does,” Winerock said. “He’s very detail-oriented and down-to-earth.”

Lio won first prize and audience favorite prize in the Institute’s piano competition. He returned to Lawrence in 2005 for a recital at the Lawrence Arts Center.

“Those were wonderful memories in Lawrence,” Lio said. “They are the nicest people I ever met. It’s where I first realized what a ‘standing ovation’ is.”

Some of Lio’s other musical accomplishments include playing for Chinese president Hu Jintao in 2004.

Byrne said Lio’s appearance was a result of the Almy Legacy Fund, which was started by KU alumnus Robert Kipp. The fund allows young musicians from the Curtis Institute to make professional debuts with the symphony, which chose Lio as this year’s guest artist.

“We’re really pleased to have him perform with us,” Byrne said.

Although the symphony performed last year for a Lawrence public school benefit, this is its first time as part of the Lied Center’s performance series in nearly 10 years, Byrne said. The symphony will be conducted by music director Michael Stern, and the performance is his first appearance in Lawrence.

Tim Van Leer, executive director of the Lied Center, said the center was bringing the symphony to Lawrence because of the artistic vision of the symphony under Stern’s direction and because of Lio’s connections with Lawrence.

Van Leer said the symphony would take people on a journey through the music and give them the opportunity to hear the vibrant young pianist.

— — Edited by Sam Speer