A Bu

A Bu (Chinese: 阿布; born Dai Liang, 1999 in Beijing)^[1] is a Chinese jazz pianist and composer.

Life

A Bu studied classical piano and jazz piano at the Central Conservatory of Music, Beijing at the age of nine^[2] and, from September 2014, at the Juilliard School in New York under Hung-Kuan Chen.^[2][3] After standing in for a performer at the 2012 Nine Gates festival, he was scouted by Sennheiser, later releasing multiple albums with their record label.^[4]

In 2013, he performed an unplanned improvised with Chick Corea at the JZ Festival.^[4] In 2015 he won first place in the Parmigiana Jazz Solo Piano Competition at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland.^[5][1] Also in 2015, A Bu was invited by Unesco to play at the International Jazz Day All-Star Global Concert.^[1]

On November 21, 2016, he premiered Nikolai Kapustin's Nocturne in G major for piano and orchestra op. 16 in Moscow, accompanied by the Moscow Jazz Orchestra conducted by Igor Butman.^[6][7][8]

Discography

• 88 Tones of Black and White; Sennheiser (Harmonia Mundi), 2014^[9]
• Butterflies Fly in Pairs, with Tom Kennedy (Bass) and Ryan J. Lee (Drums); Sennheiser (Harmonia Mundi), 2016^[2]
• One Step East, with Larry Grenadier (Bass) and Eric Harland (Drums); Jz Music, 2021^[10][11]

References

1. "Montreux Jazz Festival". Montreux Jazz Festival (in French). Archived from the original on 11 July 2015. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
2. "A Bu – Die Jazz Welt eines 17- jährigen Musiktalents auf der großen Bühne". JazzRadio. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
3. "Just Jazz International - A Bu". Just Jazz International. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
4. Jazz, All About (2016-11-17). "Dai Liang, aka A Bu: Beijing Prodigy article @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
5. "ONES TO WATCH: A Bu". Sennheiser.com/Bluestage. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
6. Gu, Yanjing. "A Pedagogical Guide to Kapustin's Eight Concert Etudes, Op. 40".
7. "A Bu Jazz Piano Recital". www.szyyt.com. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
8. "A Bu". www.schott-music.com. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
9. "ZEIT ONLINE | Lesen Sie zeit.de mit Werbung oder im PUR-Abo. Sie haben die Wahl". www.zeit.de (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-18.
10. 顾馨. "New album out from jazz pianist A Bu". www.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
11. Jazz, All About (2021-04-03). "A Bu Trio with Larry Grenadier and Eric Harland: One Step East album review @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2022-12-18.