​Jingyu Jin

Jingyu is a composer who approaches music as a way to explore sound, space, and emotion. Her compositions are influenced by literature, history, and philosophy, often drawing inspiration from stories, abstract ideas, and human experiences. Instead of focusing only on melody or harmony, she pays close attention to texture, contrast, and the physicality of sound itself.Jingyu’s creative process is shaped by a love of books, particularly works by Borges and Mishima. She often structures her music like a novel, using recurring motifs and shifting harmonies to create a sense of movement and change. Her piece The Sea of Facility reflects this approach, inspired by Mishima’s The Sea of Fertility tetralogy. The music follows the novel’s themes of fate and transformation, using sound to capture the passing of time.Jingyu is deeply influenced by composers like Lachenmann, Saariaho, and Takemitsu. She admires how these composers expand the idea of what music can be, using extended techniques, unique timbres, and silence as an essential part of expression. In her own work, she experiments with different ways of producing sound—bowing metal objects, breathy woodwind tones, or layering microtonal harmonies to create shifting textures. She enjoys exploring both the delicate and the harsh, often placing fragile, whisper-like sounds next to moments of raw energy.

 

She has received the following awards:

• 2020: Won a prize in the College Cup competition of Wuhan Conservatory of Music.

• 2022: Third prize in the 18th SUN RIVER PRIZE Student’s New Music Composition competition

• 2022: Original work selected for Wuhan Conservatory of Music 2022 Academic Traditional Chinese Style Works Show.

• 2023: Second prize in the Regulations on JEAN SIBELIUS Composition Competition (Online).

• 2024: Shortlisted for the Le Domaine Forget de Charlevoix New Music Session (A Music Festival).

 

Jingyu’s compositions have been performed in chamber and orchestral settings, and she has taken part in masterclasses and competitions. However, what matters most to her is not awards or recognition, but the connection between music and the listener. She believes music is not just about structure or technique—it is about communication. A piece should create an experience, inviting the audience to listen in a new way, to feel something unexpected, or to find their own meaning in the sound.Jingyu continues to push her work in new directions, whether through orchestral writing, experimental projects, or collaborations with artists from other disciplines. For her, music is a way of questioning, exploring, and imagining new possibilities. She sees sound as more than an art form—it is a way of thinking, feeling, and understanding the world.