Everyone knows how many Columbia grads go off to do interesting things when they finish their four years here. Once in a while, though, there is someone who deviates more from the beaten path than most. Jazz musician Stephanie Chou, CC ’09, is one such person.
Chou majored in math at Columbia and is using her degree in a non-traditional way. On Friday, April 29, Chou’s first album, “Prime Knot,” will be released at Drom (85 Ave. A, at East 6th Street), at 6 p.m. Chou composed nearly all of the album’s music, basing her work on mathematical concepts and on traditional Chinese folk songs she grew up hearing.
In mathematical knot theory, a prime knot is one that cannot be decomposed. Chou describes it as “taking a piece of string, tying and twisting it up however you like, and then gluing the ends together.” Chou finds these knots to be incredibly beautiful, and the variety of these knots inspired her to create different variations on the Chinese tune “Jasmine Flower.”
Chou began her musical studies with classical piano at the age of 5 and had focused her interests on jazz by high school. At Columbia, she took many jazz classes without actually completing the jazz studies major or concentration. She also played piano and saxophone with many jazz groups on campus before she transitioned into composition.
“I had always been writing stuff, but I took my first composition class in my senior year of college,” Chou said. “Writing goes with the math more. I’m better at it because you have time to think about what you want to say.”
Chou also feels that using traditional Chinese melodies has helped her get in touch with her roots. “I studied Chinese growing up and a little bit at Columbia,” she said, noting that singing in the language “has really helped my Chinese.”
Chou feels that her greatest strength is composition, but she sings and plays saxophone and piano adeptly on the album. Two of the other musicians featured on the CD, Jeremy Siskind and Joel Gombiner, are also Columbia alumni. “Working with people who play on that level was an incredible experience,” she said. “This is the best way for someone to grow artistically—I’ve learned so much doing this album.”
Chou currently studies composition with Patrick Zimmerli, a professor in Columbia’s music department, and will head to City College to study composition in the fall.
When asked about her biggest influences, Chou was unable to pinpoint one or even just a few. She draws on a wide range of musical genres for inspiration, from madrigals to ’90s pop. “I’m in a phase where I’ve just been trying to listen to as much as possible,” she said.
Like a prime knot, Chou feels that the album “came out to be more than the sum of its parts.” Her main goal, and the greatest challenge she felt she faced was “creating a cohesive sound.”
Chou thinks the album achieves fluidity overall but hopes to accomplish this further in her next project, which will be more of a world music collection.
“This is where I want to go, but it’s also more viable commercially and where my strengths are,” Chou said of the decision to move away from jazz. Chou feels that she will be more capable of getting her message across to audiences through this different genre.
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