Maxwell began playing piano at four, violin at seven, and trombone at eight, and started composing at twelve. He studied composition first with Jacob Charles and then with Yiming Wu. He has also received guidance from Professor Wang Lu at Brown University.
His compositions explore the interplay of mathematics, musical structure, and artistic expression.
2026
for symphony orchestra
A large-scale orchestral work inspired by an Irish waterfall where powerful storm winds push falling water upward. Its three sections, Storm, Waterfall, and Retrogration, explore turbulence, continuous flow, and reversal.
2026
for string quartet
Inspired by the individuality of prime numbers and Paolo Giordano’s The Solitude of Prime Numbers. Four independent voices approach, imitate, interrupt, and separate from one another, with polyrhythms—including 7:4—shaping their shifting relationships.
Performance MusicOn Festival · October 2026
2025
An exploration of musical flow, movement, and changing patterns.
Recognitions
2025
for violin and piano
A work tracing a musical journey between darkness and illumination through the evolving relationship of violin and piano.
Performance MusicOn · New York City · 2025
Recognitions
Maxwell has studied violin alongside piano from an early age and performs as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral violinist.
Selected performances & ensembles:
MusiCube is Maxwell’s ongoing project exploring the intersection of mathematics, music, and computation through the Rubik’s Cube.
Beginning with Cubin’ Composer in 2023, the project has evolved from mapping cube colors to musical notes into a system that uses cube transformations, mathematical structures, and algorithms to generate rhythm, harmony, and musical patterns.
Selected versions:
An early JavaScript prototype translating Rubik’s Cube patterns into music.
A TypeScript-based interactive system exploring cube transformations through rhythm, harmony, and algorithmic music.
Maxwell began studying piano at age four and violin at age seven. During middle school at Concordia International School Shanghai, he also played trombone for three years, broadening his experience from strings and keyboard to wind and ensemble music. He later made violin his primary instrument.
During the COVID years, his musical interests expanded into composition, eventually bringing together his interests in music, mathematics, and technology. He has studied composition with Yiming Wu since 2024.
As a violinist, Maxwell has performed with school and youth orchestras in Shanghai and the United States. In 2026, he was selected as Concertmaster of the RIMEA Senior All-State Orchestra and received a Superior rating for his performance of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto at the RIMEA Solo & Ensemble Festival. He currently performs with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and the Moses Brown Chamber Ensemble.