Prof. Xiaogang YE
Founding Dean, School of Music, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen

Xiaogang YE is the founding dean of School of Music, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, a professor of the Central Conservatory of Music, and a music educator. YE was a member of the National Committee of 10th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a member of the Standing Committee of the 11th, 12th, and 13th CPPCC. He is currently vice chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, chairman of the China Musicians Association, an international honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, international chair in composition at the Royal Northern College of Music, distinguished professor of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music  and the Xinghai Conservatory of Music in Guangzhou, honorary professor of the Ukrainian National Tchaikovsky Academy of Music, and a consultant to the Tianjin Juilliard School. YE is the founder and artistic director of the Beijing Modern Music Festival, Shenzhen Belt & Road International Music Festival, Tsingtao International Music Festival, Guangdong-Hongkong-Macao Greater Bay Area Music Season, and International Music Competition Harbin. He is one of the members of Talents Project selected by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China, and an expert who enjoys a special allowance from the State Council. YE is a representative figure of contemporary Chinese music and one of the most well-known composers in the country.

YE has composed a large number of works in a variety of genres, including symphonic music, chamber music, dance drama and opera, as well as film and TV music. YE’s important symphonic works include Ode to Heroes, Horizon, The Last Paradise, Song of the Earth, Twilight of the Himalayas, Scent of Green Mango, Mount E’mei, Lu Xun (Symphony No.5), The Heroes (Symphony No.7), The Backyard of the Village, Springs in the Forest, Yangzhuoyong Cuo, Shenzhen Story, Macau Bride Suites and Yong Le. The Jade Goddess of Mercy and The Rise of the Great Nations, two of his film scores, were very well received. YE’s piano concerto Starry Sky, written for Lang Lang, was viewed by an audience of around three billion people worldwide when it was performed as part of the opening ceremony concert of the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Since 1995, the world-renowned publisher Schott has published and served as an agent for YE’s works.

YE’s works have been widely performed by orchestras in China and abroad, including the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Bamberger Symphoniker, Munchner Philharmoniker, Philhamoniker Hamburg, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Del Teatro Alla Scala, Russian National Orchestra, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, New Japanese Philharmonic, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Macao Orchestra, China Philharmonic Orchestra, China National Symphony Orchestra, and Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. His works have been presented in the Hong Kong Arts Festival, Macau Arts Festival, Beijing Music Festival, Shanghai Spring International Music Festival, Shanghai New Music Week, Musikfestspiele Saar, Warsaw Autumn International Festival of Contemporary Music, and George Enescu International Festival.

Beginning in 2013, the “China Story” concert series featuring YE’s music has been presented in venues all over the world, including Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center (New York), and concert halls in Berlin, Saarbrücken, Münich, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Moscow, Kolkata, San Jose (Costa Rica), Lima (Peru), Nates (France), Dublin, and Bydgoszcz (Poland). The events have constituted a significant contribution to the propagation of Chinese contemporary music on the international stage, receiving wide acclaim and gaining great success.

YE has been the recipient of many prestigious honors in China and abroad, including a Five Distinguished Project Award by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China, a Wenhua Music Award by the China Ministry of Culture, a first prize of the Golden Bell Award by the China Musicians Association, a 2012 Guggenheim Fellowship Award, and a 2013 China Arts Award, among others. YE has composed music for more than 30 important Chinese movies and TV series, and won “The Best Score Award” five times for his efforts in this area.

As a member of the Standing Committee of the 11th, 12th, and 13th CPPCC, YE has been enthusiastic in the promotion of music and of national arts education. He has made strong appeals to increase government funding for the arts and has proposed motions concerning cross-cultural exchanges and the protection of musical copyright. At many national meetings, YE has called relentlessly for increasing public attention to the protection of intellectual property, and for the promotion of cultural exchanges with the rest of the world. There has been dramatic progress in both of these areas as a result of his vigorous efforts.