Renowned Chinese pianist dies at 93

Zhou Guangren, a renowned Chinese pianist and music educator, died at her home in Beijing on March 7. She was 93.

For decades as a prominent member of the faculty at the Central Conservatory of Music, Zhou was devoted to music education and trained lots of Chinese pianists who are famous today, including Dan Zhaoyi, Sheng Yuan and Wang Xiaohan.

Born in Hannover, Germany in 1928, Zhou returned to China with her family in 1933 and learned to play piano at 9 years old with veteran pianists like Qian Qi and Ding Shande.

Her career as a concert pianist started during the 1940s. In 1949, she started to teach at the Shanghai Conservatory and in 1951, Zhou won third prize during the Piano Competition of the 3rd World Festival of Youth and Students, making her the first Chinese musician to receive an international prize. She also won a prize during the First International Robert Schumann Competition held in Berlin in 1956.

During the late 1950s, Zhou started to teach at the Central Conservatory of Music. In 1980, she gave recitals at universities in the United States, introducing Chinese piano music to new audiences.

Since 1980, she was a frequent judge at major international piano competitions worldwide. She was chairman of the jury at the China International Piano Competition in 1994—the year the competition was launched.