We’re looking forward to introducing you to Jeffery Ou. Check out our conversation below.
Jeffery , so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Thank you for having me!
Well, I love cooking and traveling, and try to do both as much as possible (and as financially feasible as possible on the traveling part…the economy is insane these days). On a day-to-day basis, I like just going on a walk – at a park, right outside my home, or even an empty mall. It’s just nice and detoxifying. I also love finding deals on needs from places like Sam’s and Costco (I am entirely addicted to both places), and thrift stores. I also like libraries and other free and quiet places. Did I mention I love food? I love food, and trying new recipes. I recently learned to make pho and it’s low-key become a healthier homemade addiction. I can also appreciate the occasional sitting around and not doing much…we all need those days, right?
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am Taiwanese-American, and a pianist. I practice pretty regularly and daily. I play solo recitals and also occasionally as a soloist with orchestra (which I love to do). There is always a special energy putting a concerto together with a great group of musicians and especially “having to” do so in a rather limited span of time. When I am working on my own I have all the time in the world to really get to know the music and probe its depths, but working with a group one can just prepare their part and trust that the orchestra will have his/her back, and vice versa. Currently I am revamping the Chopin Op.28 Preludes with plans to perform them again in the next year. I first learned this set as a graduate student at UT Arlington back in 2021, and fell in love with the emotional and musical sophistication of the individual pieces. To have been able to learn and perform all of them was truly a privilege and overcame personal barriers for me (as I had never before learned an entire series of works). I’m really looking forward to doing so again. I also teach lessons privately (please write me with lessons inquiries – jefferyou2009@gmail.com) and work with many music programs in many school districts during the first half of the year. So I think there is healthy variety in my work.
I think something that sets me apart is that I consider myself very traditional and artistically conservative – in an age that is crazily evolving and fast-paced. I was brought up in a very old-fashioned home, was very serious about music from the get-go, studied with very serious teachers from the beginning and carried that energy all the way through university and graduate school. Of course I have many thoughts both positive and negative about the matter, but in many ways I am thankful because it helped develop structure, discipline and commitment in my approach to music, and eliminates a lot of decision fatigue especially in an age when we are presented with so many options about everything. Another facet that I feel is unique is that I had the opportunity to participate on season 4 of America’s Got Talent, back in the summer of 2009. I was 18 at the time, and was very fortunate to have had the experience to the extent that I did, making it to the semifinals. Though it is a small part of my life, it is a memory I will always gratefully cherish.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I would say my piano teacher in high school. I had come to her after a handful of years with another instructor who was/is a tremendous pianist, meant well but was SUPER strict and demanding. So I had come in already with great psychological energy and a preparedness to be both inspired and dismantled. Up until then I had practiced music as little more than almost exclusively hard manual labor – I was used to long hours, harsh criticism in lessons and what felt like very little if not nonexistent progress. Though I loved learning repertoire and loved to practice it was definitely insured by a lot of TOUGH love. But learning from this new (at the time) teacher when I began high school was just different. She was firm but also nurturing, and put me through many festivals, signed me up for competitions, and really instilled a sense of capability in ways I hadn’t experienced before. It was refreshing.
To that end I owe many thanks to Baya Kakouberi for being literally my music mom!
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Absolutely and with zero doubt – capability.
I have had some personal/family history that I would only share in person on a long walk, but I will say that certain things you overcome in life will empower you in your capabilities, self-knowledge and resilience in ways you never thought were possible. It can seem ironic because we so often equate success with (physical) ability and measure our abilities by what we can materialistically accomplish. But to overcome strife and even our own minds at times, and things that are not tangibly apparent – that is intrinsically powerful. To quote an analogy, it turns ”impossible” into “I’m possible.”
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
I would think relationships. Relationships with others, relationships with what we do, relationships with the world around us. We have only a finite time in the world and in life…how are we spending that time? Are we leaving people or places better than when we found them? How are we caring for those we share this life with? Are we finding common ground especially in a world that is so divisive in the present day? Those are the most important questions we should ask ourselves I think.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you laid down your name, role, and possessions—what would remain?
Character, I would hope. At the end of the day, that really is all we have left. There are people who will spend entire lives building riches, nice homes, a great image, a fancy car, a prodigious reputation etc. But when our time is up, we won’t keep any of these things. All that really remains is who we were to begin with.
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Image Credits
Devon Cass
NBC
