Fei-Ping Hsu

Who was Fei-Ping Hsu?

Fei-Ping Hsu is a renowned Chinese American pianist who is known for his sensitive, brilliant, and poetic interpretations.

Mr. Hsu was born on the island of Gulangyu in southeast China. As the youngest son of a Christian pastor, he grew up singing hymns while his mother played on an upright piano. One day when his mother was ill, the five-year-old Fei-Ping went to the piano and played the hymns by ear. The family realized his tremendous talent and encouraged him to study music. When he was eight years old, he had a rare opportunity to meet Professor Ji-sen Fan, the head of the piano department of the Shanghai Conservatory, and was recognized as a child prodigy. By the time he was twelve-years-old, he already played the complete Chopin Etudes and had performed with the Shanghai Philharmonic. Feiping was invited to perform for the Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, who was so impressed with his ability that she personally invited Feiping to study and perform in Europe under her sponsorship. Unfortunately, he was not allowed to accept this invitation because of the advent of the Cultural Revolution during the 1960s. However, he survived the labor camps and became well known in China and toured extensively throughout the Far East as a soloist with the Central Philharmonic which was the foremost leading orchestra.