Jo-Yu Chen
| Jo-Yu Chen | |
|---|---|
| Born | Taiwan |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Website | joyuchen.com |
Jo-Yu Chen is a Taiwanese jazz pianist and composer.
Life and career
Chen was born in Taiwan and initially studied classical music.[1] She listened in particular to Romantic composers and moved at the age of 16 to New York's Juilliard School, mainly to study oboe.[2] She became exposed to more types of music there, and became more interested in jazz.[1][2] She later obtained a PhD in music education from Teachers College, Columbia University.[2] She then continued her studies at The New School and took jazz piano lessons from Sam Yahel.[2]
Chen's first album, Obsession, was released in 2009.[2] This was followed three years later by another trio album, Incomplete Soul.[3] In 2014, Chen, as "the first Taiwanese jazz artist signed to a major label", released Stranger, an album consisting largely of her original compositions.[1]
Discography
An asterisk (*) indicates that the year is that of release.
As leader/co-leader
| Year recorded | Title | Label | Personnel/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009* | Obsession | Sony Music Taiwan | Trio, with Chris Tordini (bass), Tommy Crane (drums) |
| 2012* | Incomplete Soul | Sony Music | Most tracks trio, with Chris Tordini (bass), Tommy Crane (drums); one track quartet, with Andy Lin (erhu) added |
| 2014* | Stranger | Okeh | Most tracks trio, with Chris Tordini (bass), Tommy Crane (drums); some tracks quartet, with Kurt Rosenwinkel (guitar) added |