Zhexiang Li

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Biography

Zhexiang Li is a BOB (“Best of the Best”) top-notch innovative talent of the Central Conservatory of Music. He previously studied under Professor Zhang Xinning and is currently a student of Professor Wei Danwen.

In 2019, he was admitted to the Central Conservatory of Music Middle School as the top of the cohort, demonstrating extraordinary musical potential.

Li Zhexiang’s artistic footprint spans all over the world. At the age of 11, he entered the international stage and has since given solo recitals in renowned concert halls and major theaters in Beijing, Los Angeles, London, Nagoya, Hong Kong, and other cities. He has also appeared on CCTV, winning widespread acclaim for his profound musicality and compelling interpretations. Now only 19 years old, he has performed a series of memorable concerts with many well-known orchestras in China and abroad, including the China Philharmonic Orchestra, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, Pacific Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música, Camerata Orchestra, and Salzburg Soloists Chamber Orchestra.

In competitions, Li achieved remarkable success. In 2019, he won First Prize and the Best Performance of Polonaise Award in the Junior Group of the 2nd Beijing International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition for Young Pianists. In 2023, he won First Prize along with several special awards at the 5th China Shenzhen International Piano Concerto Competition. In June 2024, he received First Prize, multiple concert tour awards, the KNS International Agency Prize, the Victor Macedo Pinto Prize, the Câmara Municipal do Porto Prize, and the opportunity to record a solo CD at the 26th Santa Cecilia International Piano Competition. In November 2024, he won Second Prize and the Audience Prize at the 2024 Xiamen International Piano Competition.

He is widely recognized as a rising star in the Chinese piano industry.

• What do you think makes Chopin's music special, and what is the key to playing it well?

  I think the most important thing when playing Chopin’s music is to be natural and simple. That natural simplicity has to come from within, from yourself. The music should come directly from the heart to the listener. The key to Chopin’s music is about creating a personal connection between the performer and the audience.

• What was your preparation for the Chopin competition like?

  It was a little unfortunate because I only had about two months to prepare. That is a very short time for such a demanding program, especially when the repertoire lasts nearly three hours. Some of the program was already familiar to me, but this is the biggest competition in the world, and the level of preparation required is extremely high.

  This year was particularly difficult because I was also preparing to enter university in China. I had to take the Gaokao, the national high school entrance exam, which required an enormous amount of study. Because of that, I could not fully focus on the Chopin Competition during the preliminary round. I often practiced very late at night, from around ten o’clock until one in the morning. During the day, I had to study mathematics, science, geography, and many other subjects. As a result, my preparation was limited.

  Even so, I truly tried my best, and in the end, the result was good. I received a strong score, and my teacher was very happy. He told me that it is rare to manage both intensive academic preparation and a competition like this at the same time. I am proud that I was able to handle both reasonably well, and although it was challenging, the outcome was not bad at all.

• How was the venue of the Chopin Competition (National Philharmonic)?

  The concert hall was excellent, and the audience was incredibly quiet, probably the quietest I had ever experienced. Because of that, I could hear everything while I was playing, and the sound projected all the way to the back of the long hall. Sometimes it felt as if the sound was floating in the air, which was a wonderful experience.

  The pianos were also very good. There were five pianos available, but during the tryouts, each piano was placed in a different position on the stage. When I chose my piano, I selected the Steinway while it was positioned in the corner of the stage. However, during the actual performance, it was placed in the center, and both the sound and the keys felt very different. When I played the first note in the first round, I immediately noticed the difference and was screaming, ‘Oh my goodness,’ inside.

  I adapted very quickly so that no one noticed the shock on my face, but I was quite nervous at that moment. Fortunately, the nervousness passed quickly, and I was able to focus on the music.

• If Chopin were alive and you met him, what would be the first thing you would ask him?

  I think I would ask him, “Could you please listen to my performance?” I would really love to play for him, because Chopin was such a great composer. Perhaps the way we play Chopin today is not exactly how he imagined his music. He may have had a different approach and a different taste in how his works should be played. That’s why I think his perspective would be incredibly important and meaningful.

• What sparked your passion for music?

  When I was very young, maybe two or three years old, my parents owned a music shop where they sold instruments like pianos, violins, and many others. In the shop, there was a large red grand piano. From such a young age, I loved playing that piano. It was very shiny, and it immediately attracted me.

  I think the piano has always been the right instrument for me. I truly love it from the bottom of my heart. Whenever I saw a piano, music and passion naturally came to me.

• Do you have a favorite piece or a composer?

  At the moment, I think my favorite piece is Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3. In general, I enjoy music by many composers, but my favorite is probably Brahms. I love his harmony and the depth of his passion. His expressiveness is intense rather than subtle, and that is something I deeply admire.

• Which particular works do you think you perform the best?

  In Baroque music, I feel that I play Scarlatti a bit more naturally than Bach. In classical music, I think Mozart suits me best. For the Romantic period, I would say Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninoff, and Brahms. As for more modern or contemporary repertoire, I feel especially confident in pieces by composers like Prokofiev, Mussorgsky, and Samuel Barber.

• Which performance are you most proud of or resonates with you the most?

  I think it was recently, during the second round of the Chopin Competition. That performance is the one I am most proud of because of the stage, the audience, and also the live stream audience online. All of that together made it a very special moment for me, and I think it is the performance I feel most proud of so far.

• Which musician do you like the most, or are you most influenced by?

  I think it is Horowitz, because Horowitz was my teacher’s teacher. My teacher is Dan Wen Wei, who was possibly his first Asian student.

  I remember that when I was about seven or eight years old, I watched one of Horowitz’s performances online. It was his famous concert in Moscow. I still remember the pieces he played, including Mozart’s Piano Sonata K.330 in C major, Chopin’s Heroic Polonaise, and Rachmaninoff’s preludes, among others. His playing was remarkable, and that experience had a strong influence on me. It inspired me deeply and pushed me to strive for a higher level in my own piano performance.

• What do you do offstage that inspires your musical artistry onstage?

  Sometimes I conduct by myself at home, listening to symphonies and concertos. I often imagine myself in front of a large orchestra. I conduct along, sometimes even imagining the piano as part of the orchestra. This kind of imagination is very helpful for me.

  I also find inspiration through other forms of art. I like reading books and watching great films. For example, I was deeply moved by the Korean film Ode to My Father. It has a powerful story that truly touched my heart. After watching a film like that, I often feel inspired to play music, especially more emotional or melancholic pieces. Those experiences influence my interpretation.

• Do you have any unique practice techniques or routines?

  No, I find slow practice while listening to every note carefully the most effective practice method.

• Are there any exciting performances you’ve planned?

  For me, every recital and every concert is part of an ongoing journey. I always aim to make each performance better and more complete, and I give my best every time I go on stage. After each concert, I reflect on how it went. Sometimes I feel the performance was not as strong as I hoped, and that motivates me to prepare even more carefully for the next one.

  Each performance is an opportunity to grow, and that is what excites me. I look forward to every future concert with curiosity and enthusiasm, knowing that each one offers a new chance to learn and improve my music.

If you’d like to listen to his captivating performances, please check out his performances on his YouTube channel and at the Chopin Competition 2025, round 1 and round 2, as well as backstage moments on his Instagram!