Wu Fei
Born and raised in Beijing, Wu Fei is a composer, vocalist and performer of the guzheng (Chinese zither). She began performing guzheng at the age of six, and spent her formative years studying composition at the China Conservatory of Music before moving to the US in 2000. She holds an M.A. in Composition from Mills College.
Wu Fei has performed and recorded with musicians such as John Zorn, Fred Frith, Secret Chiefs 3, Carla Kilhstedt, and Cecil Taylor. Her commissions range from a composition for the Percussions Claviers de Lyon that premiered in the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, to live performances in Paris and Tokyo for Hermès. She has composed for symphony orchestra, choir, string quartet, chamber ensemble, Balinese gamelan, film, and modern dance. She has performed at the Stone and MoMA in New York City, North Sea Jazz Festival in the Netherlands, Vossa Jazz Festival in Norway, Europalia in Belgium, Beijing MIDI Festival, and Madame Guitar Festival in Italy.
Her solo albums are A Distant Youth (2007, Forrest Hill) and Yuan (2008, Tzadik Records). Her most recent release is Pluck (2011), the eponymous record of her duo with Brooklyn-based classical guitarist Gyan Riley. Wu Fei is also currently collaborating with American banjo player/singer-songwriter Abigail Washburn.
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