Julie Zhu is a composer, artist, and carillonneur. She is the recipient of the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for her interdisciplinary work, visual and aural, that has since been exhibited and performed internationally. Zhu studied at Yale University (mathematics), the Royal Carillon School, Hunter College (MFA art), and is currently pursuing a DMA in composition at Stanford University.

About the piece

The title nadir aux pommes is taken from the 1974 film Céline et Julie vont en bateau: Phantom Ladies Over Paris by Jacques Rivette. The piece is about a friend who is both so alike to you and yet so different. A charming, comical at times, collaborative and combative relationship, to both assert oneself and do the dance with the other. A goldfish in a bowl (live or virtual) is witness to this interaction. The composition is as well about distraction and the absurdity that can arise from giving attention to specific sound objects. The documentation video made with free stock video footage of fish was fun enough to then be included in the performance itself.