Saxophonist · Composer · Builder
Ethan Liu
I’m a senior at Northview High School in Johns Creek, Georgia. Music has been more than a hobby for me — it’s how I express myself. I play tenor saxophone, write for orchestra and band, produce in Ableton, and this year I built a machine that plays the saxophone’s mouthpiece.
- 1st Chair, All-StateGMEA All-State Band, tenor saxophone — 2023, 2024, 2025
- Governor’s HonorsGHP 2026, Music — Woodwind: Saxophone
- Gold PrizeCouperin International Competition, original composition (2026)
- Mechanical EmbouchureA robotic saxophone mouthpiece, designed and built independently
- Founder, PeerNotesFree music lessons taught by a team of six student tutors
Beginnings
Someone handed me music
From a Suzuki viola in first grade to a saxophone in a middle-school jazz band — this is where it started.
Viola
My journey with music began with the viola through the Suzuki program in first grade. I was tall for a first-grader, so it felt like a natural fit. I found myself drawn to music both through playing and listening to it. Suzuki Program and Orchestra · Harris Hill Elementary School, Rochester, New York (2015–2019) · Conductor: Pamela Facklam
Children’s string orchestra
My first instrument
Viola performance
A new instrument
Later, while visiting family in China, my parents took me to a restaurant where a jazz band was playing. The saxophonist caught my attention, and I decided I wanted to be just as cool as he was.
Bay Trail Middle School Jazz Band
Bay Trail Jazz Band concert
Bay Trail Jazz Band concert
An early solo
Youth Saxophone Ensemble, Eastman School of Music
Perform
On stage
Solo recitals, marching fields, state honor bands, and concert halls in Prague and Chicago.
Solos
Performing solos has always been nerve-wracking for me, but the end result is so worth it. Over the years they have helped me grow my musicality as a performer. Private instruction with Dr. Kenny Baik (D.M.A., Peabody Institute), 2023–present
Seagull — Toshio Mashima
Come As You Are — Steven Banks
Fantasia — Heitor Villa-Lobos
Pequeña Czarda — Pedro Iturralde
Marching band
I joined marching band out of curiosity, but it gave me a new way to connect music with athletics, community, and friendship. It also helped me grow as a teammate and leader. Tenor Saxophone Section Leader & Band Arranger/Librarian, Northview High School Marching Titans
Regards — Movement 1
Guilty Pleasures — Movement 1
All-State
All-State has been an important way for me to see where I am as a musician and keep improving. It also gave me the chance to meet musicians with different backgrounds from across Georgia. First chair tenor saxophone, GMEA All-State Concert Band — 2023, 2024, 2025 · Featured solos in Dixieland Jam (Bob Lowden) and Deep River (Benjamin Horne)
Featured solo
First chair tenor
GMEA All-State
Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony
AYWS has been the most advanced and challenging ensemble I’ve been part of. It gave me the chance to perform difficult music, travel to new venues, and meet talented musicians and professionals from across the state. Principal Tenor Saxophone, 2024–present · Conductor: Dr. Scott Stewart
Suspect Folktunes — “Olga on the Volga”
Orchestra Hall, Symphony Center
Principal tenor saxophone
Over the Moon — Frank Ticheli
Variations on “America” — Charles Ives
In the Mood — Glenn Miller
Governor’s Honors Program
GHP was one of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had in high school. I spent the summer fully immersed in music and met so many wonderful people outside my major too. GHP 2026 · Music — Woodwind: Saxophone · Georgia Southern University
Final Boss — Chris Evan Hass
Boz — Jeff Jarvis
1812 Overture, Op. 49 — Tchaikovsky
Guitar & lovelikesnow
As I got older, my interests branched out beyond saxophone. Guitar introduced me to heavy metal, rock, and indie music — I even started my own band and experimented with singing. lovelikesnow — founder, lead guitar & vocals · guitar, vocals, and arrangements by Ethan
Spring Snow — 10CM
後來的我們 (Here, After, Us) — Mayday
Iris — The Goo Goo Dolls
Yellow — Coldplay
First concert as a guitarist
Other instruments
Create
Writing, arranging, producing
My interest in composition started when I was young, making up my own parts in songs I felt bored in. Writing my own music gives me the freedom to express myself like no other way.
Composition
Heu, non tua (Alas, I am no longer yours)
Inspired by the Greco-Roman myth of Orpheus and Eurydice and first written for a Latin class project. My interest in the classics drew me to its darker, emotional themes. It was my first competition submission, and it received a Gold Prize for Original Composition (no age limit).
Tools: MuseScore Studio
Kaiju
Inspired by Pacific Rim and Shin Godzilla. I used the band’s full instrumentation for a massive, cinematic sound, experimenting with dissonance, odd time signatures and other unconventional techniques while paying homage to film scores.
Tools: MuseScore Studio
Also: Battle of Zama (full orchestra, 2024) · E.V. (full orchestra, 2024)
Arranging
Arranging lets me be creative while working within limits. I have to think about the instruments and skill levels of the players, which pushes me to find new ways to shape the music.
Mishima / Closing — Philip Glass
La La Land Medley — Justin Hurwitz
Merry-Go-Round of Life — Joe Hisaishi
Shanghai Tan (上海灘) — Joseph Koo
Production
Production let me take written music and turn it into finished recordings. Through Ableton I was introduced to music technology — a field I want to pursue in my future and career.
都市理論 (Urban Theory)
Inspired by 1990s–2000s anime and the night-time cityscapes of Shibuya and Shanghai — the atmosphere of those cities at night in the style of vintage anime.
Tools: Ableton (MIDI drums, synths, pads) · Focusrite Scarlett (saxophone, electric guitar)
プレリュード (Prelude)
A breakcore experiment sampling Sakamoto’s Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence and the Winstons’ Amen, Brother — taking one of my favorite pieces in a completely different direction.
Tools: Ableton, sampling
Nightwave
Influenced by the metal and J-rock I was listening to at the time. Written, played and recorded by me.
Tools: Ableton (MIDI drums, keys) · Focusrite Scarlett (bass, guitar)
Build
The Mechanical Embouchure
As I became more interested in music technology, I started thinking about how the physical act of playing could be recreated. Electronic wind instruments simulate the sound — I wanted to recreate the airflow and the way the lower lip presses the reed.
- ~8 monthsIndependent, Feb–Sep 2026
- 9 iterations3D-printed lip holder (Bambu Lab A1)
- 24 V blowerBrushless, up to 4 kPa
- Arduino (C)Hall-effect pedal → blower speed
See it work
Design and build
D-major scale
Glazunov, Concerto in E♭ major
Service & leadership
Music for people who can’t reach a hall
PeerNotes
Founder · 2026–present · peernotes.org
Free music lessons, virtual and in person. Six student tutors now teach all saxophones, clarinet, flute, trumpet, trombone, euphonium and tuba.
Northview Chamber Music Society
Outreach Officer, Treasurer, performer & arranger · 2023–present
Saxophone quartets, woodwind ensembles and solos at senior living communities and public parks. I contacted venues, managed club funds, and arranged music for our ensembles.
- Guide Club — Community Outreach Director, Tutor2023–present Tutored low-income students in grades 2–9 in math, reading and science; outreach to groups including the Gwinnett Community Resource Center.
- Northview Junior Classical League — Secretary, Parliamentarian, Editor2023–present Wrote and managed the chapter newsletter, The Oracle; helped organize Fall Forum 2025; GJCL Membership Advisory Committee.
- City of Johns Creek — Bilingual volunteer2023–present English and Mandarin Chinese volunteer for the annual Lunar New Year Celebration.
- S.E.A.S.U.S. — Volunteer performer2024–2025 Tenor saxophone in the S.E.A.S.U.S. orchestra and model in the Hanbok Show at the 2024 Korean Festival in Atlanta.
“Music has always been a huge part of my life and one of the main ways I express myself. I love performing, creating, and finding new ways to make music. In college, I hope to keep growing as a musician while finding new ways to bring music and technology together.” — Ethan