Jen Shyu

New York-based performer Jen Shyu works as a pioneering multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, dancer, and producer whose shows cross multiple genres. A multilingual artist and longtime associate of boundary-pushing saxophonist Steve Coleman, Shyu has pursued studies of traditional music and dance across Taiwan, Brazil, China, South Korea, East Timor, and Indonesia, drawing on those experiences to shape her distinctive multidisciplinary work. In addition to Coleman she has worked with numerous forward-thinking musicians such as Anthony Braxton, Wadada Leo Smith, Vijay Iyer, Chris Potter, Michael Formanek, and David Binney.

Born in Peoria, Illinois, to immigrant parents from Taiwan and East Timor, Shyu developed an early interest in performance, entering a local ballet company at age five. Piano and violin lessons followed at age eight, and at age 12 she took part in the Stravinsky Awards International Piano Competition at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During her teenage years she performed in local musical theater productions, an activity that guided her toward Stanford University, where she initially majored in theater before switching to opera. While enrolled there she grew drawn to jazz improvisation and began performing at nearby clubs. After graduation a journey to Cuba deepened her engagement with jazz, salsa, Latin, and Afro-Cuban idioms, styles she continued to explore upon settling back in San Francisco. Her first recording, the standards collection For Now, appeared in 2002.

Meeting and studying with saxophonist Steve Coleman in 2003 marked the point at which she began forging an individual voice beyond the standard jazz repertoire. She became a member of Coleman’s Five Elements band, touring and recording with the group over several years. The 2011 release Synastry reflected further development through a set of harmonically ambitious and emotionally resonant duets with bassist Mark Dresser. Experiences with Coleman also shaped the 2015 album Sounds and Cries of the World. Featuring her Jade Tongue ensemble, the recording also included contributions from trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, string player Mat Maneri, and additional musicians. Critics praised the project, and in 2016 Shyu received a Doris Duke Artist award. The next year she issued Song of Silver Geese, again spotlighting Jade Tongue alongside the Mivos Quartet.