From infancy, Elliot was exposed to classical piano thanks to his sister, Rebecca, practicing her recital pieces. As a toddler being dragged around to his sister’s recitals and competitions, Elliot knew his sister’s repertoire well and would sing or hum along.
“Apparently I could be quite loud,” shares Elliot, of his verbal expression of his sister’s music. “Whenever my sister performed well, my parents treated her to ice cream, which I also got.”
By the age of six, Elliot begged his parents for piano lessons in addition to the cello. With two children in multiple lessons, Elliot eventually had to choose an instrument.
The Wuu children studied with three Russian teachers who all lived on Jonquil Street in their home town of Fremont, California. The street was nicknamed “The Jonquil Conservatory”.
“Our parents have been super supportive of both of us becoming pianists, fully supporting our passions,” shares Elliot, whose father, John, played piano at church and is an avid golfer. Both parents shared a love of classical music with their children.
“My mom was the knowledgeable one,” states Elliot. His mom, Sze-Ying, passed away in 2023 after a brief battle with cancer. “Mom would record our lessons and take notes, helping coach us at home outside of the two lessons per week we each had. She was our rock.”
Elliot describes his experience at Juilliard as “transformative” and found the environment very supportive. He is currently working on his masters degree while his older sister, Rebecca Wuu, is earning her doctorate in piano performance at Stony Brook University on Long Island.
Teaching, international competitions, and performing take up Elliot’s life. He considers himself a bit of a freelancer and finds the energy of New York inspirational and motivating. He hopes to play golf again with his father when he has the time in his performance schedule.
Elliot is releasing an album this summer, titled Onward, which consists of four pieces symbolizing the journey about life moving forward.
Extended Bio
Elliot Wuu has captured audiences with colorful tones, sensitive musicality and emotional depth in his music. He is a Young Steinway Artist, received the 2018 Gilmore Young Artist award, and is a winner of the Salon de Virtuosi 2021 Career Grant.
Wuu has performed in major venues in the US, France, Italy, Germany, UK, Poland, Romania, and China. In New York City, he has performed at the UN Headquarters, the WQXR Greene Space, and Carnegie Hall.
Other concert highlights include the Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris, Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, Aspen and Ravinia Festivals, La Jolla Music Society, Hilton Head Bravo Piano Festival, and Chopin Foundation of the United States. He was also featured on WQXR’s Young Artists Showcase and NPR’s From the Top radio programs.
After making his debut at age 16 with the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra playing Rachmaninoff’s “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini,” Wuu has performed with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, Columbia Indiana Philharmonic, Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, among others.
Born in 1999 in Fremont, CA, he began piano at age six. He studied with Yoshikazu Nagai at the San Francisco Conservatory Pre-College, as well as at the Valley Christian High School Conservatory of the Arts. The recipient of a Kovner Fellowship Award at The Juilliard School, he received a BM and MM degrees under the tutelage of Robert McDonald.