Biography:
Described as having "a captivating, vivid imagination," Edward Lu [b. 2003.11.11] writes music that jitters, smears, soars, and treads the line between realism and abstraction, molding evocative sonorities and thoughtfully-crafted structures into his creations— often reflecting the natural world, visual art, architecture, imaginative spaces, and everyday objects. Drawn to organic evolution, he takes simple musical fragments and morphs their construction— timbrally, texturally, rhythmically, gesturally, spectrally, harmonically, melodically, and structurally— over time into something elaborate and intricate, and vice versa. He is fascinated with gradual transformation and the malleability of noise and sound. Through his music, he hopes to create immersive, profound, and transformative experiences that spark wonder and joy in his audience and fuel an appreciation for the beautiful things all around.
Lu is a prize-winning composer who won the 2025 Society for New Music New York Federation of Music Clubs/Brian Israel Prize and the Emerging Composer Award in the 2025 Tribeca New Music Young Composer Competition. He was a finalist in the Rocky Mountain Chamber Choir Call for Compositions (2025), a semifinalist in the ASCAP Morton Gould Composer Award (2025), and the C4 IGNITE Competition (2025). He attended Connecticut Summerfest (2024), the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival (2024), and New Music on the Point (2025). His works have been performed and read by notable ensembles such as ~Nois, Popebama, Imani Winds, Ulysses Quartet, and the Syracuse University Contemporary Performance Lab. Upcoming projects include collaborations with Syracuse University Singers and the Society for New Music All Stars.
Lu is pursuing his bachelor's degree in Composition at the Setnor School of Music of Syracuse University, studying with Dr. Natalie Draper, Dr. Loren Loiacono, and Dr. Nicolas Scherzinger. He studies saxophone with Dr. Anne Kunkle, and has performed as a soloist and ensemble musician at venues such as Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall in New York City and St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland. Previous to his matriculation at Syracuse University, he studied Chinese classical music for six years, performing with the Music from China Youth Orchestra and premiering works in Taipei, Taiwan, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Outside of music, Lu is an avid food enthusiast and finds joy in sampling culinary delights around the globe. Currently, the Thai dish "Yum Pu Ma" is at the top of his radar.