Unpretentious, he conjured up something magical, drawing the audience into his inner peace. —Emily White at New York Concert Review

(He is) a brilliant pianist, perfectly presenting what is expected to happen at the Beijing Music Festival, i.e., a scene where East meets West, in his interpretation of Messiaen’s Oiseaux exotiques. —Classical Music Magazine

The pianist fully captured Janáček, the composer’s distinctive phonological system and private soundscape… with greater possibilities created in detail, dynamics and emotional expression. — Jed Distler at GRAMOPHONE

Born in the 2000s, JU Xiaofu has gradually grown into a young Chinese pianist who has a style of his own. He has given solo performances across the world, including Vienna, Salzburg, Berlin, Verbier, Fontainebleau, Aspen, Dublin, Bergen, Barbados, Singapore, New York, Los Angeles, and major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. Jörg Demus, a deceased famous piano virtuoso, praised him as “a pianist with an extraordinary talent and natural endowment”.

JU Xiaofu has performed at major concert halls including the Wiener Musikverein, Grosses Festspielhaus, Salzburg, Berliner Philharmonie, Palace of Fontainebleau, Rose Theatre at Lincoln Center, NCPA, Shanghai Concert Hall, and Verbier Church. In his 2023/24 season, JU Xiaofu was invited to perform at the China Philharmonic Orchestra’s opening concert. In his 2024/25 season, JU Xiaofu made his debut with the China NCPA Orchestra as a guest pianist for “Less is More” Mozart. Beyond that, he has successfully held solo recitals under different themes, receiving wide acclaim. In May 2024, JU Xiaofu gave a solo recital at the Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall at the invitation of the Paulus Hook Music Foundation.

Since he debuted with the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra for a concerto at the age of 14, JU Xiaofu has successfully cooperated with lots of orchestras including the Hofburg Symphony Orchestra, Bard Contemporary Symphony Orchestra, Mahler Foundation Festival Orchestra, Beijing Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Opera House Symphony Orchestra, Guizhou Symphony Orchestra, Jiangsu Symphony Orchestra, Huhhot Philharmonic Orchestra, Xi’an Symphony Orchestra, and Shanghai Neo-Classical Chamber Orchestra. He has also worked with many famous conductors including YU Long, LÜ Jia, CHEN Zuohuang, WANG Yongji, LIU Yunzhi, YUAN Ding, XIA Xiaotang, ZHU Man, LI Biao, ZHANG Liang, CHENG Ye, CHANG Chang, ZHAO Xiao’ou, CAI Jindong, JIN Yukuang, John Warner and Christian Pollak. In the summer of 2023, JU Xiaofu successfully partnered with the China National Opera House Symphony Orchestra on Mozart’s Concerto, K. 488, although he had had only six days to prepare for understudying.

JU Xiaofu is also a regular visit to numerous leading music festivals, including the Aspen Music Festival, Fontainebleau Music Festival, and China Now Music Festival in New York‌. As a recitalist, he has attended the Beijing Music Festival twice on invitation. In the summer of 2024, he was invited to the Verbier Festival Academy‌ and granted the Tabor Piano Award. In March 2025, JU Xiaofu worked with NCPA Classics in releasing his debut solo album, Solitude in the Woods, which features piano pieces by Schumann, Liszt, Debussy, Bach (arranger: Busoni) and Scriabin.

JU Xiaofu is also devoted to promoting contemporary music. He has had the privilege of premiering many major works, including Philip Morris Glass’ Piano Concerto No. 3 (China premiere) at the Music in the Summer Air, YE Xiaogang’s Symphony No. 2 “The Great Wall” (U.S. premiere) at the China Now Music Festival in New York, and Messiaen’s piano concerto Oiseaux exotiques (China premiere) at the Beijing Music Festival. He also performed Elise Arancio’s ensemble work, Infinite Juke, at the Fontainebleau Music Festival, winning the Ravel Award.

JU Xiaofu began composing poetry in 2016. So far, he has published two poetry anthologies - On the Road to the Remains of Spring (Shanghai Literature & Art Publishing House, 2019) and Long Tune (Long River Press USA, 2024). In 2021, he premiered Three Sketches at the Shanghai Concert Hall, a work composed by composer Abu in accordance with three of his poems.

JU Xiaofu attended the Shanghai Conservatory of Music Middle School. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree from the Juilliard School, USA. Now he is studying for a Doctor’s Degree in Pianistics at the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover. He has studied under ZHOU Ting, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Nicolas Namoradze and Arie Vardi. He has been appointed as China-Austria Cultural Exchange Ambassador by the Mayor of Salzburg and engaged as a visiting artist to the Capital College of the Arts Management and Technology.