A native of China, Qing Hou began violin studies at the age of nine with her mother, a professional cellist and a prominent teacher of both cello and violin. Only three years later, she was selected from among hundreds of applicants to study at the legendary Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and, in 1987, was a prize winner of the Chinese National Youth Violin Competition. The following year, she came to the United States as a full scholarship student of Sylvia Rosenberg at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, where she received a Bachelor of Music degree. Hou then studied with James Buswell at the New England Conservatory, earning a Master of Music degree in 1994. During her student years, she was chosen by Alexander Schneider to be concertmaster at the New York String Orchestra Seminar. Hou also won first prize in numerous competitions, including the Marbury Violin Competition, the Baltimore Music Club Competition, the Yale Gordon Violin Competition, the Brockton Symphony Concerto Competition, and the New England Conservatory Concerto Competition. 

Upon completing her studies in Boston, Hou promptly began her professional orchestral career, winning a position in the San Francisco Symphony. In 1997, Daniel Barenboim appointed her to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. 

When not performing with the CSO, Hou is active as a chamber musician. She recently performed a series of concerts in Germany with members of the Saarbücken Radio Orchestra; she also has toured Switzerland, Italy, and France. Hou has appeared throughout California as a member of Trio Phoenix and has performed at chamber music festivals in El Paso, Banff, Sarasota, Madison, and Sun Valley, among others. She has been heard on National Public Radio's Performance Today and regularly performs throughout the Chicago area. 

As a soloist, Qing Hou has appeared with orchestras in Boston; Baltimore; Chicago; and Xiamen, China, performing concertos by Brahms, Mozart, Sibelius, Bach, and Vivaldi, as well as works by Ravel and Sarasa. She rencently made her first appearance as soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performing Mozart's G major Concerto conducted by Daniel Barenboim.