Concert & Cake

Xiaqiangege (Xia) Liu – Pianist

Xiaqiangege (Xia) Liu is a London-based pianist currently working as Resident Accompanist at Merchant Taylors’ School and Associate Pianist at The Royal Ballet School.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Piano Performance from Wuhan Conservatory of Music, graduating with First-Class Honours, and a Master’s degree in Collaborative Piano from the Royal Northern College of Music, graduating with Distinction under the guidance of Dr Harvey Davies.

As a concert pianist, Xia has performed at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester and Duke’s Hall at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Her performance experience spans chamber music, vocal and instrumental collaborations, Chinese and Western music projects, and ballet accompaniment.

Her international experience includes working as a staff pianist intern at the Pienza Summer Festival in Italy, receiving an 80% scholarship to participate in the IPAI Bavaria Young Artist Programme in Germany, and performing as a soloist with a mixed Chinese and Western orchestra at the London International Chinese Music Festival.

Ao (Andy) Deng-Pianist

Ao (Andy) Deng is a UK-based Chinese pianist，currently working as a Junior Fellow of Accompaniment at the Royal Northern College of Music. He received his Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Studies in Piano Performance from the Royal Northern College of Music. He also holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

Andy has won multiple competitions in China, Australia, and the UK, and his current
performance spans solo, concerto, collaborative and orchestral works. In 2024, Andy made his debut at London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall, performing as an art song accompanist in the Climate Agenda concert series. He played in the Hallé Steve Reich Festival with percussionist and conductor Colin Currie. The same year, he won the Le Foyer des Artistes Concerto Award in Ireland, making his concerto debut at Derry’s St. Columb’s Hall with conductor Darren Hargan, performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto K.414. He was also invited by Juventudes Musicales de Granada to give a solo recital at Auditorio Manuel de Falla in Spain. At RNCM, he premiered two works for piano and percussions by Michael Daugherty and Minas Borboudakis. In 2025, he performed Prokofiev’s formidable Second Piano Concerto with the Nottingham Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Mark Heron at Nottingham’s Albert Hall. Andy has been a regular guest pianist at Sinfonia Smith Square, appearing in its Season Opening Concert and the inaugural London Festival of Chamber Music, working with world-leading musicians such as Lee Reynolds, Alessio Bax, Paul Watkins and Sarah Aristidou. In Sydney, Andy won numerous Eisteddfod prizes and performed at Verbrugghen Hall, Sydney Opera House, and Town Hall. He played orchestral piano with the Modern Music Ensemble and Wind Symphony at the Sydney Conservatorium. He also performed in the opening concert of Master Music Studio, one of Sydney’s current leading concert venues.

Andy is dedicated to shaping creative concert ideas. In 2025 he organized a concert in Manchester’s Forsyth Music dedicated to Leoš Janáček, including a regional premier of Sinfonietta for four hands, presented together with Xia Liu, his piano partner in Andantia Duo. He has continued his concert practices under the name Ensemble Pohádka, having hosted three concerts at London’s St Pancras Clock Tower and St James’s Sussex Gardens, exploring immersive and creative concert experiences and programming involving audience engagement.