Bio
A Boston-based saxophonist and music curator who was welcomed as a 'surprise' to the Boston jazz scene.
Specialty
Zishi Liu is a Boston-based saxophonist and music curator. He made history as the first Chinese artist to play at Boston’s famed Regattabar in collaboration with Blue Note Jazz Club in 2025. His work has been featured by WGBH, contributing to the broader narrative of Asian representation in jazz.
Zishi's specialty is thinking about how music can be used to help businesses grow and people connect. He has curated live music programs for businesses in the U.S and China and has been featured in local media. With his multicultural background, Zishi has worked with social organizers successfully in various business settings.
Bridging East and West Through Jazz and Composition.
Style
As a performer and composer, Zishi’s music seeks to create and resolve new tensions between familiar and foreign themes. The melancholic aspects of Coltrane's later work—which incorporates Eastern concepts of meditation and emptiness—serve as a departure point for his music.
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His childhood coincided with a pivotal moment in 90s Asian pop music. As China reopened to the West, Chinese musical culture rapidly redefined itself, synthesizing Western pop harmonies and R&B stylings with the lyricality and sentiment of Chinese ballads.
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This illuminated to Zishi the possibilities of combining familiarity with foreign to create something compelling and new.
Achievement
Zishi has toured extensively across the U.S., China, Malaysia, and Singapore and remains a key figure in the New England jazz scene. He has performed at prestigious venues across the U.S. and Asia, including the House of Blues (U.S.) and Meeting Jazz Club (China).
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In 2025, he will release "American Anxiety" as a saxophonist and composer and "When We Sing "as an arranger and producer, collaborating with internationally renowned musicians like Francisco Mela and Eric Hofbauer.
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As a staff member at Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA, Zishi leads admissions and recruitment efforts while mentoring students. In 2024, he represented Longy in China, giving masterclasses and performances to strengthen international partnerships. He also curates performance opportunities, helping students gain real-world jazz experience.