Oliver Xu

Percussionist Oliver Xu has been internationally recognized as a solo performer advocating for contemporary music. Based in New York City, he was recently awarded a Benzaquen Career Advancement Grant by The Juilliard School after graduating with his master’s degree.

A passionate teacher, Oliver has taught percussion ensemble and music courses including an elective on creative coding for Juilliard’s Music Advancement Program as a Teaching Fellow. He has also given masterclasses for the Eastman Online Percussion Festival and the University of Nebraska-Omaha percussion studio.

Oliver graduated from The Juilliard School with a Master of Music, where he studied with Daniel Druckman. He graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Percussion Performance as a Lois S. Rogers Scholar from the Eastman School for Music, where he studied with Michael Burritt. Oliver has a strong interest in non-western music, having studied mbira with Dr. Jennifer Kyker and mridangam with Dr. Rohan Krishnamurthy.