Luo, Jing Jing a native of Beijing, China, is a prolific composer and performer who was described as one of “the first generation of avant-garde composers… whose music muses over the remote past and then depicts the results of her wealth of reflections…” by the music critic from the Hong Kong Arts Festival. Recently, New York Times critic Steven Smith wrote that her new work “Tsao Shu” was “suspended stark, deliberate daubs, fidgets and jolts against copious silence…”.
Luo’s musical language connects East and West and transcends traditional boundaries. She has received a commissioning award from the Koussevitzky Music Foundation, twice from Rockefeller Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters award, and dozens of other awards. Luo is celebrated in both her homeland and the West for her distinctive and original musical language. The American Academy of Arts and Letters praised her as “…expressive, a fascinating mixture of sources, and exciting virtuosity. …refining her special language with each new score…”.
While Luo tirelessly explores her own rich musical heritage, she accolades the Western contemporary music language with a twist of East and West penetrating each of her works. Her constant struggling between the conflict of an individual’s voice with societal demands becomes a frequent theme reflected in her new works.
Luo’s most recent work, “Tsao Shu”, deliberates the visual paint stroke effects from an ancient Chinese calligraphy technique as a subtle timbral transformation with a sublime timing throughout the piece. It engages and excites performers and audiences.
Her upcoming World Premiere “Spirare Potes Spirare” for solo flute and cello was praised as “one of the most important American chamber work” by the international flute diva Clarie Chase, to whom the work was written for. Clarie Chase and katinka kleijin will give the world premiere at the Chicago Cultural Center on October 12th, 2014.  This work marks a new journey in Luo’s music career significantly.
Luo continues to experiment with the idea of non-structured framework. In her 2010 work, “Lagrimas Y Voces”, the structure was loose, in a sense that it was difficult to ‘grasp’ any motivations through each changing gesture. The inconsistent timbral transformation was furthered by the unique interpretation of each different musical ensemble.
Luo’s interests in electronic and digital media in music brought her to study with the late Electronic pioneer Bulet Arel at Stony Brook University. Luo states in one of her essays: “The electro-acoustic sound could associate the most to nature; it enriches and enlarges the sound of nature.” Her up coming project “Multiple Objects”–an environmental themed multi-media work that utilizes stereo-playback and solo cello with an object player will be giving the World premiere of the work at Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 2015.
The Netherlands Dans Theatre commissioned her to work with the dance company of one of the world’s leading Japanese chorographer, Kai Taikei, resulting in “Monologue” Part I and “One Woman’s Philgrimage” in Part II as in “Light” for  the large dance project.  Percussion plays a vital role in Luo’s work. Luo employed the Shangxi Drum percussion set, an ancient Chinese drumming technique, in the Part II of this large frame of dance work in 1989-1990.
Web: http://jingjingluo.com/bio/ (2014)