Jacky Jiaqi Liu Portrait | 2025.8 in New York City
Photographed by Jiyang Chen
Jacky Jiaqi Liu | Composer
Full Bio:
Jacky Jiaqi Liu (b. 2002) is a multi-award-winning Chinese composer, currently based in New York City. Recognized for his poetic, diverse, and highly dramatic musical expression, Liu’s compositions are inspired by philosophical and literary influences that resonate deeply with his emotions, inviting the audience to reflect and introspect.
As a recipient of the Frederick Loewe Scholarship in Composition at The Juilliard School, Liu is pursuing his BM degree under the guidance of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Melinda Wagner. He made history as the first student from the Central Conservatory of Music Middle School to be accepted into Juilliard’s undergraduate composition program. Among his numerous accolades, Liu has won the 2024 American Prize in Vocal Chamber Music (Charles Ives Award in Chamber Music), the ASCAP Foundation 2023 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards, the 2024 Juilliard Orchestra Competition Arthur Friedman Prize, and the 2023 Juilliard Gena Raps String Quartet Prize. He was also awarded the SOLI Chamber Ensemble’s 30x30x30 Project Competition in 2024.
Liu’s compositions have been performed across the U.S., Europe, South Korea, Japan, and China, with recent highlights including the world premieres of his “View in Spring” with Grammy-winning conductor Lucas Richman and members of The Bangor Symphony Orchestra in 2022, the 2024 premiere of his string quartet “Heart! We Will Forget Him!” at Lincoln Center, and the 2024 premiere of his first symphony “Crossing” with conductor Jeffrey Milarsky and The Juilliard Orchestra. In October 2024, Liu was invited as a featured composer for the musicON Festival, where his chamber music work was performed at the America’s National Opera Center in New York. In 2025, his piano-vocal work was featured in the SOLI Chamber Ensemble’s national tour, and he collaborated again with Jeffrey Milarsky and The Juilliard Orchestra on the premiere of his second symphony “Echoes of Impermanence” at Juilliard.
As a passionate educator, Liu has served as a faculty member at the Long Island Music Conservatory and as a judge for the 11th Annual Youth Music Composition Competition in 2024. He has been an active member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) and the Society of Composers and Lyricists (SCL) since 2022.
Short Bio:
Jacky Jiaqi Liu (b. 2002) is a multi-award-winning Chinese composer based in New York City. Recognized for his poetic, diverse, and highly dramatic musical expression, Liu’s compositions are inspired by philosophical and literary influences. Liu is currently pursuing BM Composition at The Juilliard School under the guidance of Melinda Wagner. Among his numerous accolades, Liu has won the 2024 American Prize in Vocal Chamber Music (Charles Ives Award in Chamber Music), the ASCAP Foundation 2023 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards, the 2024 Juilliard Orchestra Competition Arthur Friedman Prize, and the 2023 Juilliard Gena Raps String Quartet Prize. Liu’s compositions have been performed internationally, including premieres with Grammy-winning conductor Lucas Richman, conductor Jeffrey Milarsky, The Bangor Symphony Orchestra, and The Juilliard Orchestra. As a passionate educator, Liu has served as a faculty member at the Long Island Music Conservatory and as a judge for the 11thAnnual Youth Music Composition Competition.
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