Beryl Liu

← BACK TO ARTISTS
ARTIST STATEMENT:

“The “Gu Zheng” (古筝) – also known as the Chinese Zither – is what brought me into the world of the creative arts initially. This is a 21-stringed plucked Chinese traditional instrument that dates back to approximately 2,500 years ago. Through the past 12 or so years, this instrument has become part of my identity and taught me more than I could have ever imagined. It taught me about my culture, my heritage, and also the power of creative storytelling – I would not be who I am today without it. 

It is with great honor to be once again partnering with my dear friend, Danielle Zhang, who is a professional Guzheng player and musician for this project. We have collaborated many years together when we were both pursuing our undergraduate degree at McGill University and I am always beyond inspired by her work and learned so much of what it means to be an artist from her. This is our first time reuniting together to play again to film this video in three years. 

The piece we are playing is called “Tunes of Yunnan” which seeks to depict the beautiful nature of Yunnan (Southern Province of China) and its festive culture. This is a Guzheng duet arranged by renowned Guzheng Artist and professor, Yuan Sha (袁莎). Danielle and I recorded the audio for this piece with a djembe in 2016 at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music.”

Headshot of the artist. She is wearing a black top with red flowersBIO:

Beryl is a 2nd year Gallatin Graduate Student who previously completed an undergraduate degree at McGill University in Drama & Theatre and Political Science. A Chinese-born Canadian, Beryl is passionate about bridging cultures and differences through creative mediums. She has also studied the Guzheng (Chinese Zither) for over 11 years and is performance (10) level certified. While at Gallatin, she is pursuing an artistic thesis on the study of actor-character relationships, music was her first path into the creative arts. She hopes to continue her passion in Guzheng and share the power of world music in universal storytelling.

Visit her SoundCloud here or follow her on Instagram.