Zhang Shengliang (aka Niu Niu)

 

Niu Niu is the stage name of Zhang Shengliang, who was born into a musical family in Xiamen in 1997. With signs of exceptional talent shown at the age of three, Niu Niu made his recital debut at six years old with a Mozart Sonata and a Chopin Étude. Niu Niu was the youngest student ever enrolled in the affiliated primary school of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music at the age of eight, and was
admitted to New York’s Juilliard School with a full scholarship in 2014 and has graduated in 2018.

Niu Niu signed to EMI Classics at the age of nine, making him the youngest pianist ever signed to an international classical label. Since then, he has released ten albums. Fate & Hope and Lifetime, the two globally released albums under Universal Music’s Decca Classics Label, includes his own composition “Hope” and “Miss”.

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Niu Niu’s career highlights include the 2007 Pearl Awards at London’s Royal Festival Hall, where he performed Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No.1 under his mentor Leslie Howard in the presence of the future King Charles III, then the Prince of Wales. In 2009, he became the youngest pianist to give a solo recital at Tokyo’s Suntory Hall and the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. Niu Niu was also named the youngest laureate of the 2010 PRIX Montblanc in Berlin. In 2017, he was invited to perform for the presidents of China, Russia, India, Brazil and South Africa at the BRICS summit evening gala.

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In August 2016, he completed a tour in 16 cities within 25 days throughout China. So far, he had done hundreds of performances all over the world, including concerts with Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Beijing Philharmonic Orchestra, and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra. Niu Niu has also worked with many renowned
conductors including Maestro Jaap Van Zweden, Jacek Kaspszyk, Yutaka Sado, and Jiri Belohlavek.

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In April 2024, Niu Niu released Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 and Symphony No. 6 globally, a live recording album with Maestro Jaap Van Zweden and the
Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. Niu Niu continues to embarks on a world concert tour in Asia, America and Europe in 2025/26 season.