Stephanie Chou is a composer, saxophonist, and singer based in New York City. She blends Chinese musical influences with Western jazz and pop to create a unique and vibrant musical world. Stephanie’s music creates immediate cross-cultural connections and focuses on connecting with the audience.
Her debut album, Prime Knot, was an instrumental jazz sextet album featuring trumpeter Marcus Printup (Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra). Her ballet work C for G was commissioned and choreographed by former American Ballet Theatre principal ballerina/current artistic director Susan Jaffe, and premiered at Goucher College.
Stephanie’s second album, Asymptote, focused on jazz reinventions of classic Chinese folk songs, and features fresh takes on Chinese classics including "Kangding Love Song", "The Moon Represents My Heart", a tongue twister about "Eating Grapes", and a setting of one of Li Bai's most famous poems. Asymptote features jazz musicians Kenny Wollesen, David Binney, John Escreet, and Zack Lober, as well as viola and erhu virtuoso Andy Lin. She has performed her music in Taipei, Beijing, Canada, and throughout New York City at venues including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, B.B. King's, Joe's Pub, Miller Theater, City Winery, and The Cutting Room, as well as in festivals in Canada (Vancouver Island MusicFest), Italy, New Orleans, Chicago, Vermont (Discover Jazz), Pennsylvania (Musikfest), Washington DC, and throughout NY (Lake George Jazz on the Lake, Summer on the Hudson, Sunset Jazz at Lyndhurst). Her music has been included in PBS’s documentary series Roadtrip Nation and performed at Alice Tully Hall.
Chou believes in the power of music to create social change. Comfort Girl, her 80-minute song cycle exploring the lives of Chinese “comfort women” abducted into sexual slavery by the Japanese army during WWII, is not only a groundbreaking fusion of East-West musical traditions, but has also sparked public dialogue on a formerly taboo subject that still resonates globally for women today. DownBeat magazine called it, "A stunning work that…shines light on a dark chapter of history." The work is a tribute to these young women’s incandescent courage and indomitable spirit, not only while in captivity during the War but also—in a cruel irony—when they returned home to their families, who didn’t always welcome them back with open arms. Comfort Girl was commissioned by the American Composers Forum and premiered at Joe's Pub at the Public Theater. Producer/mixer/engineer Roy Hendrickson is producing a studio recording of Comfort Girl. The project is a recipient of a 2023 grant form Chamber Music America’s Artistic Projects program, funded through the generosity of The Howard Gilman Foundation.
Comfort Girl is currently being developed into an opera, Jade Star Hotel, with librettist Susan Kander and commissioned by the American Opera Project. This development is funded through grants from the the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, OPERA America’s Opera Grant for Women Composers supported by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, and the MAP Fund supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Howard Gilman Foundation, and Mellon Foundation.
She’s received grants and commissions from: Jerome Foundation, American Composers Forum, Chamber Music America, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, New Music USA, OPERA America, New York State Council on the Arts, Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, the MAP Fund, Puffin Foundation, and more. Steph was a 2024 American Music Abroad US State Department tour finalist, 2021 Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship finalist, and a finalist in the iSING! 2020 Composition Competition (China).
As an educator, Stephanie has presented many clinics and masterclasses on blending culture/music, and on the intersections of math and music. She has also performed as a guest artist for executive education workshops on leadership/jazz with the Columbia University Business School. Stephanie holds a BA in Mathematics from Columbia University. She completed graduate studies in Music Composition at the City College of New York. She studied classical piano for 15 years, started playing saxophone at age 10, and singing at age 24.
She is currently working on a studio recording of Comfort Girl (2024 release), and other new projects with engineer/mixer/producer Roy Hendrickson.
Stephanie Chou -- voice, alto sax
Andy Lin -- erhu, viola
Hyuna Park -- piano
Bryan Copeland -- bass
Ronen Itzik -- drums
show less
