Yangfan Xu (b. 1998) holds a deep passion and love for cats. Whenever she hears a string player glissando in the upper registers, she can’t help but think of a cat's meow. In addition to her feline obsession, Xu is a Chinese-born US-based composer who comes from a musical family in Lanzhou, Gansu province, with a spoiled cat who eats better than everyone else.
She studied musicology at Middle School affiliated to the Central Conservatory Of Music in China for 3 years. Xu began her compositional study in 2014. For her bachelor’s degree in music, she majored in composition at the San Francisco Conservatory Of Music with Mason Bates. Xu earned her master’s degree in music at the Juilliard School majoring in composition with Robert Beaser. She is a current DMA student at the New England Conservatory of Music and she studies composition with Kati Agócs. She has also worked with composer Phillip Lasser, Changyuan Liu, Xiaofu Zhang, Ping Jin, Michel Merlet and so on.
She has worked with professional groups such as Friction Quartet, Choral Chameleon, Keyed Kontraptions and Ravel Virtual Studios. Xu was awarded the 1st Prize of the 2020 Hausmann Quartet Quarantine Composition Competition. She is the winner of the Society for New Music's 2021 Israel/Pellman Award. She won the 2021 New Juilliard Ensemble (NJE) Composition Competition, and her commissioned work was performed by NJE at Lincoln Center in 2022.
Her composition - Luo Jiang Yuan (罗江怨) - A bit blue for string quartet has been selected for the Sydney International Composers Concerts 2023 - Contemporary String Quartet concert on April 4, 7:30 pm, at TLC Theatre, Sydney Australia.
Her composition - Fantastic Creatures of the Mountains and Seas for chamber orchestra has been selected for the Sydney International Composers Concerts 2023, Contemporary Orchestral Music I concert on July 7, 2023, at TLC Theatre, Sydney Australia.
Her composition - Bya for orchestra has been scheduled to be performed by the Sydney Contemporary Orchestra during the Sydney International Composers Concerts 2023 - Contemporary Orchestral Music (III) concert on October 6, 2023, at Verbrugghen Hall, Sydney Australia.
