Three Quick Questions with Music & Composition Instructor Dr. Chiayu Hsu

Dr. Chiayu Hsu was born in Banciao, Taiwan, Chiayu is an active composer of contemporary concert music. Her orchestral works have been performed by the London Sinfonietta, the Detroit, the San Francisco, the Spokane, the Toledo Symphony Orchestras, the Nashville Symphony, the American Composers Orchestra, the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra and the National Symphony Orchestra in Taiwan. Currently an associate professor at UW-Eau Claire, Chiayu received her Bachelor of Music from the Curtis Institute of Music, Master’s degree and Artist Diploma from Yale University and Ph.D. at Duke University. She has also studied at the Banff Centre for the Arts, the Chamber Music Conference and Composers’ Forum of the East, the Atlantic Center for the Arts, Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, the Aspen Music Festival, Fontainebleau Schools, and the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. Click here for more. Read on!

1.)    Can you share a story about your early development as an artist? Were there times when you thought you were on the wrong path? How did you motivate yourself to move past it?

When I was a kid I liked to practice the pieces that sound beautiful to me and I often thought why couldn’t I just create my own, so I started composing. Before I entered the music school in Taiwan, my teacher thought I was not talented and I was really frustrated, but I decided that I had to prove that I could do it, so I worked harder and eventually entered the school with the best grade.

2.)    How has art shaped you into the person you are today?

Music is an integral part of my life. It plays an important role of helping me to know other cultures and engaging with other people.

3.)    What's the most important lesson a young artist might learn?

Sometimes the end result might not what you expect, you just need to keep trying and working on it.