Friday, May 02, 2025

Jo-Yu Chen Bridges Classical Elegance and Jazz Fire on Rendezvous


When pianist Jo-Yu Chen left her native Taiwan to study at Juilliard, she was fully immersed in the classical world — a dual-discipline student of piano and oboe. But New York City had other plans. Soon after arriving, Chen found herself captivated by jazz, continuing her studies at The New School and falling under the spell of trailblazing pianists like Jason Moran, Sam Yahel, and Kevin Hays.

It didn’t take long for her new direction to take flight. Chen made waves with a trio of stunning releases — Obsession (2009) featuring Tyshawn Sorey, Stranger (2014) with Kurt Rosenwinkel, and Savage Beauty (2019) featuring Mark Turner — all released on Sony Music, making her the first Taiwanese jazz artist signed to a major label.

Fast forward to 2020. Back in Taiwan during the pandemic, Chen reconnected with classical peers, many also Juilliard-trained. Instead of leaving jazz behind, she found a deeper harmony between her two musical worlds.

The result? Rendezvous: Jazz Meets Beethoven, Tchaikovsky & More — her most ambitious project yet, out May 2, 2025, on Sony Music. This album blends five classical composers with jazz’s expressive language, interpreted by Chen’s trio with bassist Chris Tordini and drummer Tommy Crane.

The album opens with an exhilarating mash-up of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Moonlight Sonata, and later features an introspective solo rendition of Sonata No. 8 (Pathétique). Chen brings elegance to The Nutcracker’s Dance of the Reed Flutes, grace to Swan Lake, and a tango-inspired twist to Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2. There's even a quietly moving tribute to Ravel with Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte — a piece transformed from solo to trio magic at the urging of her bandmates.

For Chen, this isn’t a “crossover” project. It’s a natural evolution. “I disconnected from the classical world when I moved to New York, but the sound always stayed inside me,” she says. “I felt it was about time to integrate them.”

She began experimenting with that fusion in 2023 with her award-nominated single Walking Through Fear, a striking piece for piano and string quartet. In 2024, she released Schubert & Mozart: 'Round Midnight, born out of late-night festival performances in Taiwan. These projects laid the groundwork With Rendezvous, Jo-Yu Chen offers more than reinterpretation — she creates a musical conversation across centuries, one that feels both timeless and vividly alive.


Track List – Rendezvous: Jazz Meets Beethoven, Tchaikovsky & More

  1. Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 / Piano Sonata “Moonlight”

  2. Tchaikovsky – The Nutcracker: Dance of the Reed Flutes

  3. Beethoven – Sonata No. 8 “Pathétique” (2nd Movement)

  4. Tchaikovsky – Swan Lake

  5. Prokofiev – Romeo & Juliet: Dance of the Knights

  6. Mussorgsky – Pictures at an Exhibition: The Old Castle

  7. Prokofiev – Piano Concerto No. 2

  8. Ravel – Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte

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