We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Haotian Wang. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Haotian below.
Haotian, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is my live multi-sensory performance, Tea: Story of The Leaves. This project interweaves sound, music, installation, and a Chinese traditional tea ceremony into a cohesive artistic experience. The performance reflects my exploration of intercultural storytelling, traditional practice, and how art can bridge the sensory and the spiritual.
I developed this project during my senior year at New York University. Through the graduate program at Northwestern University, I explored the intersection of sound art, field recording, and transdisciplinary performance. As a Hani ethnic minority from Yunnan, Southwest China, I used the performance to navigate my cultural background and heritage while resonating universally. Tea—as a universal beverage and a symbol of healing and introspection—became the perfect medium to express this.
The performance involves original compositions and soundscapes that integrate Chinese folk elements with contemporary ambient music. Inspired by the Tang-dynasty poem “Seven Cups of Tea” by Lu Tong, each sound piece corresponds to a stage in the tea ceremony. To create a multi-sensory experience, I collaborated with tea brewers, ceramic artists, lighting designers, performers worldwide.
What makes this project meaningful is the audience’s reaction. I’ve seen people deeply moved, reflecting on their own cultural connections or simply enjoying the shared experience of slowing down and being present. It’s beautiful to see how this project sparks conversations about tradition, mindfulness, interculturality, and the relationship between art and everyday life.
Tea: Story of The Leaves represents a culmination of my journey as an artist and storyteller so far. It’s a project that reminds me why I create: to connect and to challenge cultural barriers through shared human experience.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Bio
My name is Haotian Wang, a musician, sound artist, and performer with a passion for storytelling through sound and music. My artistic journey began in Yunnan, Southwest China, where I grew up around the cultural heritage of ethnic minorities, further enriched by my travels to various cities. I got into the industry after pursuing my undergraduate and graduate degree in the U.S., where I developed my craft and expanded my artistic vision. My work spans multiple disciplines, including songwriting, poetry, composition, sound design, and live performance. I have two albums under my belt, which blend field recordings, ambient-pop, indie folk, and world music, often drawing inspiration from my travels and personal reflections. My debut album “The Bridge in The Mountain’s Hands (A Travelog) was awarded “New and Notable Album” by Bandcamp. I am also applying for a doctoral degree in Ethnomusicology (Anthropology of Music), likely starting in the fall of 2025.
Artist Statement
My art indicates the evolution from my Hani ethnic minority to a global citizen in intercultural dialogues. Focusing on humanities, my works elaborate on my daily encounters from tea ceremonies to border town fairs, and collect them as poetic assemblages that explore themes of diaspora, identity, and memory.. Referencing ancient Chinese poetry and folklore in Yunnan, I hope to reframe overlooked traditions and transform them into novel sensorial experiences.
By combining songwriting, sound design, and multi-sensory storytelling, I create works that invite audiences into spaces of healing, meditation, and cultural exchange. My goal is to design auditory experiences that hold shared feelings and stories, bridging individuals and cultures while fostering a deeper understanding of humanity.
What Sets Me Apart
My work is grounded in storytelling and cultural roots. I see sound and music as bridges between people, places, and ideas. My projects often involve traditional influences with contemporary techniques, and I aim to create meaningful dialogue between the past and the present, East and West.
Beyond artistic creation, I’m also committed to independent scholarly research and community-based works. For example, as a co-host and producer of the mandarin podcast Wok Talk, I interviewed Chinese restaurant owners overseas to explore the narratives of food, business, and transnational cultural exchange. I hope to unearth underrepresented voices in our global communities.
Proudest Achievements
One of my proudest achievements is my album, Story of the Leaves, a culmination of years of collaboration with musicians, performers, and audio engineers worldwide. The process of integrating field recordings, stories, and personal reflections into songwriting, recording, and production was both challenging and rewarding. I also took charge of the A&R myself, designing album liner notes and directing music videos.
What I Want You to Know
At the heart of my work is a mission to connect individuals and bridge cultural divides. I invite you to explore my projects, whether it’s diving into a music album, attending a performance, or joining a workshop. My hope is that my work offers a space for reflection, discovery, and connection.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
For me, being an artist allows me to observe and create connections—between people, cultures, and ideas—through music- and sound-making. Art has a unique way of transcending boundaries, whether they’re socio-cultural, linguistic, or personal. For instance, during my live performance Tea: Story of the Leaves, I was amazed by how audience members from different backgrounds connected to the experience. Even if they didn’t fully understand the lyrics or the poetry that inspired the work, they were able to immerse in the soundscapes and find meanings in the shared sense of mindfulness. Knowing that my work can spark those moments of understanding and unity is rewarding.
Additionally, being a creative allows me to dive into questions about identity, memory, and heritage, turning these life experiences into something tangible. My albums are personal travelogs that document my journey as an artist and as a global citizen. The process of crafting these works is parallel to my journey of self-discovery.
Lastly, the opportunity to inspire others, especially emerging creatives, is deeply rewarding. Whether it’s through teaching, mentoring, or simply sharing my journey, I love seeing how creativity can spark new ideas and passions in others. Witnessing someone take their first steps in sound-making or songwriting, and knowing I played a small part in their journey, reinforces why I do what I do.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
One thing non-creatives might struggle to understand about the creative journey is how much of it is shaped by uncertainty and a deep personal connection to one’s work. Unlike careers with clear pathways or measurable progress, the creative process often feels nonlinear and unpredictable. This can make it challenging for others to grasp why we pour so much time, energy, and emotion into our craft.
For me, creating art is about exploring questions that don’t have easy answers. It’s about translating emotions, cultural heritage, and lived experiences into sound and storytelling. For example, when I was developing my two music albums, I was grappling with questions about identity, memory, and how to preserve and reinterpret my cultural roots in a globalized world.
Rejection is also something every artist faces, whether it’s a project that doesn’t resonate with an audience, an opportunity that falls through, or a piece of work that simply doesn’t meet our own expectations. In this journey, I’ve learned that rejection isn’t the end of the road. Instead, it is an opportunity to revisit, rework, or pivot to something entirely new. I’ve explored so much from songwriting, production, recording, audio engineering…
Finally, being a creative artist today means that the journey doesn’t end with the art itself. My friend and I have discussed this, and we think that the ratio is 20% creation and 80% entrepreneurship. Beyond crafting songs or performances, there’s the work of building an audience, managing logistics, promoting your work, and creating a sustainable path forward. It’s a constant balancing act between creating your artistic vision and navigating the practical realities of sharing it with the world.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.haotianwangmusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haotian.music/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haotianwangsound/
- Twitter: https://x.com/haotianmusic
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7_iMzBXiwm-cgL75IJu2uA
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/haotianwsound
Image Credits
Photography Credits: Yuwan Zhang, Tangjin Xu