About Matthew Lau
Award-winning percussionist, classically-trained with a whimsical twist!
Hailed by the Aspen Times for his “soulful and technically impressive solo” at his vibraphone concerto debut at the Aspen Music Festival, percussionist Dr. Matthew Lau performs a wide range of repertoire with an absolute commitment to communicating the meaning and essence of percussion music to its audience, from arrangement of Bach’s Violin Sonata on marimba to avant-garde contemporary pieces by Franco Donatoni and Iannis Xenakis. He is aiming to democratize classical contemporary music through high-caliber and approachable performances, interactive social media presence with his miniseries #LauLicks, with a whimsical twist.
Pursuing a strong interest in contemporary percussion music, his vision and aesthetic are aimed to expand the ever-growing percussion repertoire by pushing existing boundaries, incorporating electronics & technologies and discovering new sounds. His interest in exploration of new music has led Matthew to commission new pieces with many renowned composers. He is also the co-founder and artistic director of the contemporary percussion group The Up:Strike Project. He is also one half of the percussion duo Fisher/Lau Project with fellow percussionist Dr. Abby Fisher. As a queer Asian percussionist, Dr. Lau challenge the convention narratives and work to change the traditional prescribed career path.
Matthew enjoys an international performing and teaching career. From 2018, he’s given recitals and taught at Marimbafest, Transplanted Roots Percussion Research symposium, PercuFest, Oh My Ears New Music Festival 2020, DrumsFest Moscow Competition & Festival, Percussion Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), X Encuentro Internacional de Percussion Peru, Gnessin College of Music, Conservatorio de Musica Buenos Aires Astor Piazzolla, University of the Arts Buenos Aires, Ente Cultural de Tucumán, La Plata, Conservatorio de Musica Juilian Aguirre, Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, The National Autonomous University of Mexico, The Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Universidad Veracruzana, University of Western Australia, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Australian Percussion Gathering.
Matthew obtained his Doctor of Musical Arts in contemporary percussion performance from Stony Brook University under the guidance of Eduardo Leandro. He holds a Master of Music from New York University studying with Jonathan Haas, Simon Boyar, and James Saporito. Previous teachers include Dr. Heung-Wing Lung, and James Boznos. Matthew currently resides in Boston , and maintains a private teaching studio. Matthew is the winner of the 2018 Hong Kong Arts Development Award for Young Artist in music. He is currently on the Board of Advisor and Keyboard Committee for The Percussive Arts Society, and Board of Directors for The Vibraphone Project Inc.
Dr. Lau is artist endorser of Marimba One, Black Swamp Percussion, and Rustic Percussion; his signature marimba and vibraphone mallets are made by Iñaki Sebastian Elite Mallets. His projects are supported by Hong Kong Arts Development Council, and The Boston Foundation. Besides music, he is also an avid knitter and certified as a Level 1 Master Knitter by The Knitting Guild Association.
