Chu, Arnor
Biography
Born: 2000
Country: New York City, USA
Studies: BM. Boston University, MM. Juilliard School
Teachers: Sam Solomon, Kyle Brightwell, Tim Genis, Jake Nissly, Haruka Fujii, Greg Zuber, and Billy Drummond
Website: https://arnormusic.com
Arnor Chu (b. 2000) is a percussionist and composer based in New York City.
As a composer, Arnor was the winner of the Percussive Arts Society (PAS) International Composition Contest, and his works appear on various required repertoire lists for competitions around the country, including the Texas University Interscholastic League, and Florida Bandmasters Association. His compositions have been performed across five continents, and at various competitions and music educators’ conferences worldwide, such as PASIC, TMEA and the Taiwan Music Competition. Most recently, Arnor won the 2024 Great Plains International Marimba Composition Competition, and his duo piece, Push and Pull was the compulsory piece performed by all competing groups that year.
As a performer, Arnor regularly commissions and premieres new works by current composers, and has performed with various ensembles, including the New York Philharmonic, New York Classical Players, and with the Music Academy of the West’s Festival Orchestra as a soloist for Sculptures with seven-time Grammy®-nominated composer Andy Akiho. Recently, Arnor was invited to serve as a guest artist at the 2025 Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar, performing a solo recital alongside Silk Road Ensemble founding member Joseph Gramley. He won 3rd prize in the 2022 Great Plains International Marimba Competition as a soloist.
As an educator, Arnor teaches private lessons for percussion, composition and piano, and is currently on faculty with the Harmony Program in schools across New York City. He previously coached in the Juilliard Pre-College Orchestra, and worked as a teaching assistant for the Juilliard percussion department. In Boston, he served as a percussion coach for the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras, and taught in the Intensive Community Program, which serves underrepresented communities in classical music.
Arnor received his master’s degree from the Juilliard School, studying with New York Philharmonic percussionist Daniel Druckman. He received his bachelor’s degree from Boston University magna cum laude on a full arts scholarship, where he studied percussion performance with Sam Solomon, Kyle Brightwell and Boston Symphony timpanist Tim Genis, and studied composition with Martin Amlin. His other teachers have included Jake Nissly, Haruka Fujii, Greg Zuber, and Billy Drummond.
In his free time, Arnor enjoys arranging music on the side, and occasionally shares performances of his works on his YouTube channel where he has amassed over one million views. Outside of music, Arnor enjoys travelling, photography, digital art, and language learning.[1]
Works for Percussion
Again - Percussion Duo, Marimba Duo
Drift Away - Marimba
Embers Above - Marimba, Piano
Grow As We Go - Marimba, Voice
Push and Pull - Percussion Duo, Marimba Duo
Quaver - Marimba
The Rite of Spring for Two Percussionists - Percussion Duo, Marimba Duo
Ringtone Variations - Marimba
Simple Song - Marimba
Stay Alive, For Me - Percussion Duo, Marimba Duo
Until Dawn - Marimba
References