Ji Liu

Praised for his "sensitive and unpretentious musicality" by Pianist Magazine, and referred to as "a major talent" by The Classical Source, Ji Liu has positioned himself as one of the brightest stars in classical music. In addition to topping the classical charts as a Global Classic FM artist on numerous occasions, he also delights audiences around the world, from the Royal Albert Hall in London to Carnegie Hall in New York. In 2014, his debut solo album 'Piano Reflections' stormed the UK Classical Charts, reaching number one and making him the UK's biggest-selling classical breakthrough artist of the year. This album was also nominated as the 'Best Classical Album' in the prestigious Chinese Music Awards in 2015. Following this success, Ji Liu went on to release two more acclaimed albums, 'Piano Encores' and 'Pure Chopin'. In 2016, 'Pure Chopin' was nominated for best classical album of the year (among 19 others) by Classic FM. In 2018, Ji Liu was nominated for "Best Classical Artist of the Year" at The Global Awards in London's Eventim Apollo. James Manheim's review of the artist's album "Fire and Water" states that "Ji Liu has several things going for him that keep you listening. One is that he is a composer himself, and he does... arrangements of non-piano pieces." As a prolific composer, Ji Liu pays homage to the great tradition of being a composer- pianist, just like Beethoven, Liszt and Rachmaninoff. Ji Liu has composed both original compositions and transcriptions that reveal his uniquely attractive composing style. Ji Liu was born in China and studied piano and conducting at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, after which he studied under Dmitri Bashkirov at the Escuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia in Madrid. In 2007, he continued his studies, focusing on both Piano Performance with Professor Christopher Elton and Composition with Ruth Byrchmore at the Royal Academy of Music where he graduated as a Master of Music with distinction and DipRAM for his extraordinary final recital.