Hsiao-mei Ku, a Naxos Artist, is Professor of the Practice in the Department of Music at Duke University has enjoyed a distinguished career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral artist as well as an educator and a scholar.
Ku made her debut in her native China at the age of seven and, three years later, entered the prestigious Central Conservatory in Beijing, then directed by composer Ma Sicong. A star pupil, she appeared on Chinese television at age eleven and was frequently featured in the conservatory’s showcase concerts.
Ku frequently performed for China’s national leaders and foreign dignitaries at state functions and toured extensively throughout the country as a soloist. In recognition of her artistic achievements, she received the Government Award for Best Performance.
After coming to the United States, Ku earned her Master of Music degree with distinction and the Performer’s Certificate from the School of Music at Indiana University. She subsequently established an extensive career as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. Her distinguished appointments have included Associate Concertmaster of the North Carolina Symphony; Concertmaster of North Carolina Symphony Summerfest and Appalachian Summer; Concertmaster of Orchestra Virginia Beach and Triangle Opera; Assistant Concertmaster of the Eastern Music Festival Orchestra; First Violinist of the Mallarmé Quartet; and member of the Carolina Quartet. She has also been a founding member of several chamber ensembles, including the Calichi Piano Trio, which promotes the music of women composers, as well as the Chirusca Trio and Pegram Trio.
As a longtime member of the Ciompi Quartet, Ku has performed extensively throughout the United States and abroad, presenting concerts, masterclasses, and workshops for musicians ranging from young students to students at leading conservatories.
In addition to her worldwide performing career with the Ciompi Quartet—Ku has developed a significant research and performance interest in her Chinese heritage and culture. She has explored the distinctive melodies of Chinese music through the sonorities of the Western violin, bringing her unique cultural tradition into the Western musical soundscape.
Ku has released two acclaimed solo recordings on the Naxos label, Violin and Piano Music by Ma Sicong, Volumes I and II, which have received international distribution. Following Ma Sicong’s rehabilitation by the Chinese government, she was invited to serve as a Ma Sicong Scholar and gave the premiere performance of his Rondo No. 4 at Ma Sicong’s Centennial Celebration in Philadelphia and in China.
Of her recordings, Strings Magazine reviewer Greg Cahill praised Ku’s playing, writing that the works are “played exquisitely by violinist Hsiao-mei Ku” and describing the recording as “some of the most beautiful recorded chamber music” encountered that year—“fiercely romantic and filled with heartfelt emotion.”