The Muse: JI LIU

About me

Ji began his musical training at the age of 3 and has made his Carnegie Hall Recital Debut when he was 13. Since then, he has been given concerts at some of the most prestigious concert halls and festivals across 5 continents such as Gstaad Festival by playing Bach Goldberg Variations, 92nd Street Y in New York City, Birmingham Town Hall, Wigmore Hal, Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elisabeth Hall in London, Hatfield House in UK, Newbury Spring Festival in UK, Auditorium du Louvre in Paris, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, International Stavanger Chamber music festival in Norway, Solo Piano Festival in Italy, Théâtre de Champ Fleuri in La Reunion, Rachmaninoff Hall at Tcahikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, Hong Kong Town Hall, Shanghai Oriental Art Centre, Tongyeong Music Festival in South Korea and so on.

When Ji was 14, he performed Ravel Piano Concerto in G Major with French Republic Guard Orchestra and Mr. Francois Boulanger in Canada. Same year, he also collaborated with Mr. Eric Lederhandler for Ravel’s two Piano Concertos with Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra in China. He has played the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.2 with Mr. Tadaaki Otaka in London, 2008. In 2010, he has played the Chopin Piano concerto No.2 at Drapers Hall and Hatfield House, UK; also Mozart Piano Concerto K. 488 with London String Ensemble. And his CD recording of Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue with Mr. James Watson and Academy Symphonic Brass Orchestra under Academy’s Label has received great acclaim. In 2011, he played Mozart and Beethoven Piano Concertos with Shenzhen Symphonic Orchestra in China. Ji will make his Debut with Philharmonia Orchestra in London in 2013.

In 2005 and 2006, Ji took part in the Verbier Festival & Academy in Switzerland, where he received the Tabor Piano Award and CUBS prize from UBS Bank. From 2008 to 2011, Ji received the Martin Musical Award from Phiharmonia Orchestra in London. In 2010, Ji received Audience Favourite Prize from Wigmore Hall Award and was selected by the prestigious "New Master on Tour" Series by International Holland Music Session in Netherland. In 2011, Ji was the recipient of the Yamaha Music Foundation Award of Europe, Hattori Foundation’s Debut Prize and the RAM Club Prize.

In 2003, Ji won the First Prize of the 6th Pinault International Piano Competition in New York City in U.S.A. In 2004, he won the Second Prize in the 11th International Music Competition Jeunesses Musicales in Bucharest, Romania and the first prize of Ludmila Knezkova-Hussey International Piano Competition in Canada. In 2010, Ji won first prize the Sheepdrove Piano Competition in UK. Latter he became the youngest ever first prize winner at Robert William and Florence Amy Brant International Pianoforte Competition in Birmingham.

Ji has played in masterclasses for such as Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Leif Ove Andsnes, Claude Frank, Richard Goode, Boris Berman, Zoltan Kocsis, Paul Badura-Skoda, Fou Ts’ong, Barry Douglas, Joanna MacGregor, Lylia Zilberstein, Stephen Hough, Kristina Steinegger, Ida Kavafian, Pamela Frank, Yuri Bashmet, Salvatore Accardo and among others.

From 2002 to 2006, he studied piano and conducting at Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Since 2006, he has been the formal student under Mr. Dmitri Bashkirov in Escuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia in Madrid, Spain. Now, he is studying piano with Prof. Christopher Elton and composition with Ruth Byrchmore at Royal Academy of Music in London, UK.

My work

Liu Ji’s Piano Reportoire

Bach：
Prelude and Fugue in D major,Book I
Prelude and Fugue in d minor, Book I
Prelude and Fugue in E major, Book I
Prelude and Fugue in F sharp major, Book I
Prelude and Fugue in f sharp minor, Book I
Prelude and Fugue in A flat major, Book I
Prelude and Fugue in C major, Book II
Prelude and Fugue in c minor, Book II
Prelude and Fugue in d minor, Book II
French Suite in b minor No.3
French Suite in G major No.5
French Suite in E major No.6
English Suite in A major No.1
Partita in c minor No.2
Partita in e minor No.6
Capriccioso on the Departure of a Beloved Brother in B flat major
Chaconne in d minor: J.S.Bach-Busoni
Goldberg Variations

Scarlatti：
Sonata K.212
Sonata K.213
Sonata K.54
Sonata K.25
Sonata K.531
Sonata K.455

Haydn：
Sonata in C major
Sonata XVI:49
Sonata XVI:50
Sonata in F major
Sonata in E major

Mozart：
Sonata K.331
Sonata K.330
Sonata K.332
Sonata K.333
Sonata K.545
Fantasy K.475,

Beethoven：
Sonata Op.2, No.2
Sonata Op.13 “Pathetique”
Sonata Op.27 No.1
Sonata Op.28
Sonata Op.31 No.1
Sonata Op.31 No.2 “Tempest”
Sonata Op.31 No.3
Sonata Op.49
Sonata Op.53 “Waldstein”
Sonata Op.57 " Appassionata "
Sonata Op.110

Schubert：
Sonata in B flat major D.960
4 Impromptus Op.90

Mendelssohn：
Rondo Capriccioso Op.14
Prelude and Fugue Op.35

Chopin ：
12 Etudes Op.10
12 Etudes Op.25
Nocturne Op.15 No.2
Nocturne Op.27 No.1,2
Nocturne Op.48 No.1
Nocturne Op.62 No.1,2
Nocturne in C sharp minor Op.posth
Nocturne in E minor Op.posth
Ballade in G minor,Op.23
Ballade in F major,Op38
Scherzo in B flat minor Op.31
Sonata in b flat minor Op.35
Polonaise Op.40 No.1
Polonaise Op.53
Fantasy Op.49
Barcarole Op.60
Mazurka Op.50
Waltz Op.42
Waltz Op.34 No.1
Waltz Op.70 No.1
24 Preludes Op.28

Schumann：
Variations on the name Abegg Op.1
Toccata Op.7
Canaval Op.9
Etude Symphoniques Op.13
Kinderscennen Op.15
Fantasie in C Major, Op.17
Piano Sonata in g minor Op.22

Liszt：
6 Transcendental Etudes after Paganini
Concert Etudes “Unsospiro”
Transcendental Etudes “Maaeppa”
Transcendental Etudes “Feux follets”
Transcendental Etudes “Wild Jagd”
Transcendental Etudes “Allegro molto agitato”
Tarantella
Hungarian Rhapsody No.12
Hungarian Rhapsody No.2( Horowitz transcription)
Sonata in b minor
Totentanz Solo Version
Wagner- Liszt Liebestod

Brahms：
Piano Sonata No.2

Tchaikovsky:：
Dumka Op.59
Nocturne from Op.19

CH. V. Alkan：
Barcarolle Op.65

Claude Debussy：
Suite Bergamasque
Etudes
12 Preludes Book I

Ravel：
Gaspard de la Nuit

Rachmaninoff：
Etudes-tableaux Op.33 No.2
Etudes-tableaux Op.33 No.3
Etudes-tableaux Op.39 No.5
Etudes-tableaux Op.39 No.8
Preludes Op.23 No.5
Preludes Op.32 No.5
Preludes Op.32 No.12
Vocalise Op.34 No.14

Prokofiev：
Four pieces Op.4
Four Etudes Op.2

Alexander Scrabin：
Etude Op.2 No.1
Etude Op.8 No.12
Sonata No.4
Nocturne Op.9 No.2 (for the left hand only)

Mily Balakirev:
Islamey

Bartok:
Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs,Op.20

Messiaen:
Regard de l'Esprit de joie from the Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus

Ligeti:
Etude L’Escalier du Diable from Book, II

Felux Blumenfeld
Etude Op.36 (for the left hand only)

Isang Yun:
5 Piano Pieces
Interludium A( 1982)

Akira Nishimura:
Daydream

Concerto
Mozart：
Piano concerto K.415
Piano concerto K.488
Piano concerto K.503
Beethoven：
Piano concerto No.3 Op.37
Piano concerto No.4 Op.58
Chopin：
Concerto in e minor No.1 Op.11
Concerto in f minor No.2 Op.21
Grande Polonaise in E flat with Andante Spianato Op.22
Ravel：
Piano concerto in G major
Piano concerto “for the left hand”
Brahms:
Piano concerto Op.15
Tchaikovsky:
Piano concerto No.1 Op.23
Rachmaninoff：
Piano concerto No.2 Op.18
Rhapsody on a Theme of Pagnini Op.43
Prokofiev：
Piano concerto No.2
Piano concerto No.3
Piano concerto No.4 (for the left hand only)
Gershwin:
Rhapsody in Blue

Chamber music
Haydn：
Piano Trio “Gypsi”
Mozart：
Piano Quartet in E flat major,K.493
Piano Quintet with Winds
Piano and Violin Sonata in e minor
Sonata for two Piano in D,k448
Beethoven：
Piano Trio Op.1 No.1
Piano Trio Op.70 No.1
Piano Trio with Clarinet and Cello
Piano and Violin Sonata No.2
Piano and Violin Sonata No.5
Schubert：
Piano Trio Op.99 in B flat major
Piano and Violin Sonata in D major
Three Schubert Song with Baritone:
Standchen
Schafers Klagelied
Der Zwerg
Schumann:
Piano Quartet in E flat major
Piano and Violin Sonata No.1,Op.105
Mendelssohn：
Piano Quartet in f minor Op.2
Piano Trio in d minor
Brahms：
Piano Quintet Op.34 in f minor
Piano Quartet Op.25 in G minor
Piano trio with clarinet and cello
Piano and Violin Sonata No.1
Piano and Violin Sonata No.2
Piano and Violin Sonata No.3
Ravel：
Piano Trio in a minor
La Valse for 2 pianos.
Debussy：
Piano Trio in G major
Tchaikovsky：
Piano Trio in a minor
Dvorak：
Piano trio in f minor
Sonatina for Piano and Violin
Faure：
Piano Quintet No.2
Piano and Violin Sonata No.1