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The Composers Society of Singapore (CSS) kickstarts 2020 with a new monthly series for our Musings section called Composer of the Month<\/strong>! The next composer to be featured is WANG Chenwei (\u738b\u8fb0\u5a01)<\/strong>, a talented Singaporean composer! Chenwei is Head of Research and Education at The TENG Company and adjunct faculty and composition supervisor at the National Institute of Education (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore). He is the main co-author of The TENG Guide to the Chinese Orchestra (2019), a 624-page book on instrumentation and orchestration. He is also the Composer-in-Residence of the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) from 1 Jul 2020 to 30 Jun 2022.<\/p>\n WANG Chenwei<\/strong><\/p>\n Interviewer: Emily KOH<\/strong><\/p>\n Tell us about yourself and your musical background, and the 12 instruments you play.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n My first contact with music was tinkling with a toy electronic keyboard that I received as a birthday present at age 6. I started piano lessons at age 10 and composed simple pieces on the piano. At age 13, I started composition lessons with my first teacher, Mr Tan Chan Boon, paving the way for much more presentable works.<\/p>\n I was posted to the Chinese orchestra in secondary school, for which I composed a few pieces and conducted them. I knew early on that I would not become a performing artist, and instead aimed to widen my performing experiences to be able to compose more idiomatically for each instrument. I took an interest in learning new instruments, starting with those lying around in the orchestra room.<\/p>\n In approximate order of proficiency, the instruments I can play are piano, Ruan, Liuqin, Sanxian, Zhongyin-Sheng, Diyin-Sheng, cello, contrabass, Pipa, recorder (not kidding, I composed and performed a solo piece Qi \u6c14<\/a>), Erhu, flute and Dizi. I have taken lessons in clarinet, violin, viola and trombone too, but I dare not say that I can \u201cplay\u201d them\u2026<\/p>\n Why did you choose to study audio engineering in Vienna? How does your knowledge in audio engineering influence your composing?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Besides music, I have also been interested in physics and computing, and sought a course that would combine music and science. In 2009, I embarked on my Tonmeister (audio engineering) studies at the University for Music and Performing Arts Vienna under the Media Development Authority\u2019s scholarship. On my second year in Vienna, I auditioned for and enrolled in composition studies too. Pursuing both concurrently, I eventually chose to specialise in and graduate in Composition for Media and Applied Music, which involves a lot of Tonmeister stuff like music production, MIDI sequencing and recording.<\/p>\n Due to my Tonmeister training, I place great care in balancing my orchestration, so that the parts that are supposed to be heard would indeed be audible. For example, an intricate four-part counterpoint could be totally drowned out by a timpani roll, and this is something not obvious from looking at the score.<\/p>\n You had early success as a composer with The Sisters\u2019 Islands, which launched your career when you were just 17. This work is now arranged for a variety of instrumental ensembles. Why do you arrange your works for many different instrumentations? Is there a difference from version to version? What are some challenges you face when rearranging your works for new instrumentations?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n