About
Praised for his "iridescent countertenor" (The New York Times), "liquid elegance" (Seen and Heard International), and "intense stage presence" (Classical Voice North America), Chuanyuan Liu (刘川源) is a rising force among the new generation of countertenors. His deep passion for storytelling inspires him to connect with audiences through empathy, authenticity, and creativity.
In the 2025-26 season, Chuanyuan returns to White Snake Projects as Raven in the world premiere of White Raven, Black Dove, and makes his house and role debut as Prince Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus at Cedar Rapids Opera. In concerts, he joins The Virginia Consort and Handel Choir of Baltimore as the countertenor soloist in Bernstein's Chichester Psalms, and returns to Wear Yellow Proudly for another installment of Memoirs of a Gaysian, alongside tenor Spencer Britten.
In the 24-25 season, Chuanyuan appears as the alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the Kansas City Symphony and debuts the role of Tolomeo in Giulio Cesare at Hudson Hall. Chuanyuan reprises the roles of Priest/Medium in Christopher Cerrone and Stephanie Fleischmann’s In a Grove at the Prototype Festival in its New York premiere and at Opera Saratoga as a Festival Artist, where he also takes on the role of Madame de Quinper-Karadec in La Vie Parisienne. Other season highlights include making his Alice Tully Hall debut with American Modern Opera Company in Doug Balliett's Rome Is Falling, covering the role of Painter in The Seasons at Boston Lyric Opera, guest soloist appearances for the Oratorio Society of Virginia’s Christmas at the Paramount. As an apprentice artist with Chautauqua Opera Company, he performs Elise Traynor in Lincoln in the Bardo (orchestral workshop) by Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek, and Max in Sitcom (harpsichord workshop) by Luke Styles and Alan McKendrick.
“Liu’s SUPERHUMAN COUNTERTENOR seemed CAPABLE OF ANYTHING — from POWERFUL, IRON-TONED HIGHS to GROWLING LOWS and a cheeky Broadway run for good measure. He had FULL COMMAND OF THE CHARACTER, too, telling all with a gesture, a gait or a flash of his eyes behind yellow-tinted glasses.”
—EVAN BERKOWITZ, THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE , Giulio Cesare, 2025
Raised in China and now based in the United States, Chuanyuan seeks musical projects that celebrate the interplay between his cultural roots and his adopted home, with a focus on performances that highlight Asian and/or Queer identities. Notable past projects include the title role in White Snake Projects’ Monkey (world premiere) by Jorge Sosa and Cerise Jacobs; Song Liling (cover) in Huang Ruo’s M. Butterfly (world premiere) at Santa Fe Opera; recitals Call Me by My Name with pianist Tongyao Li at the Montpellier Arts Center, Memoirs of a Gaysian with ChamberQueer and Wear Yellow Proudly, and neither here nor there, a recital on the Asian/-American experience with Diana Schwam and Ryan McCullough at Bard College; directing and performing a short film of Christopher Cerrone’s That Night With the Green Sky for AAPI Heritage Month 2022.
Other career highlights include Chuanyuan's professional debut at Pittsburgh Opera in Christopher Cerrone’s world premiere of In a Grove (Priest/Medium), a company to which he returned for Ariodante (Polinesso); his Philadelphia Orchestra debut in the concert version world premiere of Kevin Puts’ The Hours (Man Under the Arch/Hotel Clerk) under Yannick Nézet-Séguin; his Carnegie Hall debut as a Young Artist in Renée Fleming’s SongStudio; his Victory Hall Opera debut in Orpheus and Erica, a Deaf Opera (Amore, covering Orfeo). He was a Fleming Fellowship Artist at the 2023 Aspen Music Festival, where he performed the role of César in Jimmy Lopez and Nilo Cruz's Bel Canto and appeared in numerous opera, art song, and chamber music concerts.
"Countertenor Chuanyuan Liu’s Monkey is ESPECIALLY MOVING – not only for his NIMBLE VOCALS, but also for his EARNEST STAGE PRESENCE, imbuing the titular character with BOUNDLESS, CAPTIVATING PASSION."
—MAEGAN BERGERON-CLEARWOOD, THE NEW ENGLAND THEATRE GEEK, Monkey, 2023
On the concert stage, Chuanyuan has appeared as the alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah with Toledo Symphony Orchestra, as a recitalist at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall for Albany Symphony’s Clara Schumann Festival, as the countertenor soloist in Leonard Bernstein’s The Lark with the New York Choral Society, and as the countertenor soloist in Bernstein’s Missa Brevis with UVA Chamber Singers.
Chuanyuan is a 2024 winner of the prestigious Sullivan Foundation Award, a two-time National Semifinalist in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition (2023, 2021), Third Place winner in the 2024 Cedar Rapids Opera Esther & Myron Wilson Vocal Competition, Third Place winner in the 2024 Pasadena Vocal Competition, and Murray Rosenthal Award winner in the 2022 Opera Index Vocal Competition. He has also won awards from the Camille Coloratura Award, Vero Beach Opera Vocal Competition, the Gerda Lissner Foundation Lieder/Song Competition, the Gigli International Opera Competition, and more.