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Ying-Chen Kao
COMPOSER | PIANIST | GRAPHIC + WEB DESIGNER
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Performances + Events

Warwick Music celebrating 30 years
Press Release, February 8, 2024
The Warwick Music Publishing catalog contains a wide variety of work, from composers such as Mark Nightingale, Alwyn Green, Ying-Chen Kao, Martin Yates, and many more. Still proudly based in Warwickshire, these publications are now distributed worldwide by Hal Leonard.

 

 

 

The North American Taiwanese Professors’ Association Presents
NATPA 2023 Annual Conference 第43屆年會 - TAIWAN MATTERS
Saturday, August 5, 2023, 7:20 - 8:00 PM
行政院人事行政總處公務人力發展學院
臺北市大安區新生南路三段30號2樓
2F, No. 30, Sec. 3, Xinsheng S Rd, Taipei, Taiwan

Ancient Memory for solo tenor trombone
Huai-En Tsai, trombone

Presented by Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods
Asian American and Pacific Islander Festival
Sunday, June 11, 2023
Chrysalis, Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods
10431 Little Patuxent Parkway
Columbia, MD 21044

Huai-En Tsai, trombone
Ying-Chen Kao, piano

 

Ying-Chen Kao (高盈真) is a Taiwanese-American composer, pianist, educator, graphic and web designer.
Her music has been lauded as “exceedingly beautiful” in Soundboard UK, a “challenging and rich work” in the Coral Gables Gazette, and “an evocative and surreal soundscape” on minor 7th.com. She creates music that explores identity, memory, emotion, and visual imagery.

Ying-Chen’s music has been featured at various events and broadcasts, such as MUSIQA, The North American Taiwanese Professors’ Association, Taiwan Culture Center D.C., Sylvia Adalman Chamber Series, Union Square Chamber Music Society, The Hedgelawn Classical Series, Mildred McDaniel Concert Series, Old Town Hall Performance Series, the 24th Anniversary Season of the Musical Arts International, Inc., The Hermitage Museum & Gardens Instrumental Recital Series, WBJC, and NPR. Her compositions have been performed and commissioned by musicians and ensembles, such as cellist Michael Kannen, pianist Jenny Lin, saxophonist Gary Thomas, organist Donald Sutherland, Duo Sorolla, and Peabody Children’s Chorus, and have been showcased in venues, such as Capital One Hall, The Stone, The Mainstay, Ningbo Grand Theater, Hangzhou Grand Theatre, Alishan Township Tsou Nature and Cultural Center, and Kaohsiung Music Center.

Her saxophone quartet “Frustration Factory” and “Ancient Memory” for solo trombone were published by Warwick Music/Hal Leonard Europe. Her composition, “Falling Still,” a piece for cello and piano inspired by the essays of late Korean-American writer Katherine Min, was premiered by cellist Michael Kannen, pianist Qing Jiang, and narrated by the author. Two solo trombone works, “Ancient Memory “and “Transmutation” were commissioned by the 2008 Summer Trombone Workshop in Taiwan, where they were the obligatory repertoire for the competition. Her Prix D’Ete-winning work, “Lilac . Star . Bird,” for solo guitar, was released as the title track on guitarist Tracy Anne Smith’s solo debut album. Britain's Classical Guitar Magazine praised the work as “…one of almost beautiful-sounding dissonance... This is no doubt a major work that demands attention." “Collidescope,” a multimedia ballet work created in collaboration with the Peabody Preparatory Dance Department was premiered during the 150-year celebration of the Peabody Institute, overseen by renowned American theatre artist and choreographer Martha Clarke.

Ying-Chen has thirty-two years of piano performance experience and has appeared in solo recitals, world premieres, studio recordings, and collaborative concerts throughout the United States and Asia. She has been featured as soloist and chamber pianist in the Asian American and Pacific Islander Festival, Gala Opening Night of Festival of Miami, Peabody Computer Music Consort, Arts for Hearts' Sake concert series, Taiwan Culture Center of Greater Washington D.C, and Steinway Piano Gallery Miami.

Ying-Chen received her M.M., and Postgraduate Studies in composition from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, and B.M. in theory and composition from the University of Miami. She studied composition with Wen-Tze Lu, Christopher Theofanidis, and Michael Hersch. Her piano mentors include J.B. Floyd and Ernest Ragogini.

Besides music, Ying-Chen is also a co-founder of ycArt design studio LLC and an active graphic and web designer. She has worked closely with individual artists, organizations, leading management companies, publicists, record labels, and has consulted many organizations on how to build their community and online presence. Her design work, “Constellation of Voice,” was featured on the cover of the Carnegie Hall’s playbill in October 2008. She specializes in creating visually appealing and user-friendly websites, logos, flyers, posters, album packaging, and other promotional materials for musicians and artists.

Ying-Chen resides in Baltimore with her husband, composer and pianist, David Witmer.
To learn more about Ying-Chen Kao and her music, please visit her website at yingchenkao.com. You can also follow her on YouTube, Soundcloud, Facebook, and Instagram.

[January 2024]

Lilac.Star.Bird - Tracy Anne Smith
A collection of twentieth and twenty-first century masterpieces for solo guitar.
Tracy Anne Smith, guitar

Selected Works

Film + Animation Music Reels (2022-2024)

The Sonnets to Orpheus (2022) for SSAA a cappella (or SSAA choir) and cello
Text by Rainer Maria Rilke
English translations by Stephen Mitchell

Falling Still (2016) for cello and piano
Inspired by the essay of Katherine Min, "On being Humpty Dumpty"
Commissioned by Michael Kannen

Piece for unaccompanied violin (2011)
Written for Martha Muehleisen

tight-rope dancing clowns (2011) for alto saxophone and harp
Commissioned by Pictures on Silence

Formosa, the Old Train (2010) for piano
"Theme on Yi Lan folk tune, Diu Diu Dang A"
Commissioned by Jenny Lin

Solitary (2009) for bariton, clarinet, cello and piano
Poem by Dr. Hollis Robbins
Commissioned by Dr. Andrew Talle

Frustration Factory (2009) for saxophone quartet
Commissioned by AM/PM saxophone quartet
I. time is ticking…
II. frustration
III. worn to a frazzle
IV. lullaby
V. startled
VI. call it a day

Surreal Perception (2008) for clarinet/bass clarinet, violin, cello and piano
Written for REDSHIFT. Jeff Anderle (clarinet/bass clarinet), Andie Tanning (violin), Rose Bellini (cello), Isabelle O'Connell (piano)

Song of the Darkness (2008) for mezzo soprano ,violin, viola, cello and vibraphone
Poem by John Bricuth
Commissioned by Dr. Andrew Talle

Ancient Memory (2008) for solo tenor trombone | Also a version for bass trombone
Commissioned by Summer Trombone Workshop 2008 Taipei, Taiwan

Transmutation (2008) for solo tenor trombone
Commissioned by Summer Trombone Workshop 2008 Taipei, Taiwan

I am Dancing Blue Flame (2008) for soprano, tenor saxophone, piano, Max/MSP and video
Commissioned by Bonnie Lander
Text by H.A. Kares; Jenny Beck, Max/MSP

Lilac . Star . Bird (2007) for solo guitar
Commissioned by Tracy Anne Smith
I. Lilac (sweet lilac air)
II. Star (transparent star, wandering light)
III. Bird (the woodpecker)

The Blue of the End (2007) for saxophone and organ
Commissioned by Jazz saxophonist Gary Thomas and organist Donald Sutherland

Collidescope (2007) for dancers and video
Commissioned by the Peabody Preparatory Dance Department, as a part of "New Work 2007." A Collaborative Showcase for the 150 year celebration of the Peabody Institute. The ballet was overseen by renowned American theatre artist and choreographer, Martha Clarke.

Red Air (2006) for orchestra

Piano Quintet (2006)
I
II
III

Cloud Burst (2005) for cello and piano
Commissioned by Michael Kannen, Director of Chamber Music at the Peabody Conservatory, and founding member of the Brentano String Quartet.

Haunted by an Angel (2005) trio for baritone, violin and guitar
Text by H.A. Kares

530.623 (2004) trio for clarinet, violin and viola
Written for Noah Weber, Jesse Irons and Gwendolyn Fisher

Suite for three percussionists (2004)
I. Prelude
II. Rain
III. The Ending

Three Pieces (2003) for two sopranos and String Quartet
Text by Ching-Ming-Cheng (in Chinese)
I. Disappointment
II. Dream
III. Stoic Heart

Flute Sonata (2003) for flute and piano

Spanish Rhapsody (2003) for piano

Toccata (2002) for viola and piano

Press

The title of the CD comes from the three-movement work of Ying-Chen Kao. The style of the music is one of almost beautiful-sounding dissonance. Its high-roving melodies reminded me of the Hans Werner Henze Three Fragments in style... This is no doubt a major work that demands attention.
Chris Dumigan, Britain's Classical Guitar Magazine
The sophistication, originality, and worth of this composition are immediately noted by this performance. The ambitions of this composition have found a voice in the hands of Tracy Smith as she brings to life the range of intended images and sounds. New repertoire is inspiring and refreshing, especially when it as effective as this composition.
Dave DeDionisio, Those Who Dig
...At the core of this recording is the work to which the CD owes its name, "Lilac.Star.Bird", which was composed for Smith by composer Ying-Chen Kao in 2007. It is an evocative and surreal soundscape, drawing influence from a poem by famed American writer and poet, Walt Whitman. Each movement is meant to evoke a lilac, star, or bird, and they go beyond mere imitations of their titles, rather serving as prolonged meditations on each topic...
Minor 7th: Reviewing the best in non-mainstream acoustic guitar music by Timothy Smith
exceedingly beautiful
Al Kunze, Soundboard Magazine UK, Vol. 35 No. 3
台灣之夜音樂會 作曲家新秀輩出
上半場獨挑大樑的是紐約知名鋼琴家林佳靜。...林佳靜以台、英雙語介紹李元貞、周子鈴、高盈真、顏名秀四位作曲新秀。林佳靜指出,台灣作曲人才輩出,年紀輕輕表現卻令樂壇刮目相看,這次介紹的四位女作曲家都在25歲以下,作品各有特色。 高盈真是琵琶第音樂學院博士候選人,為此次音樂會改編宜蘭民謠「丟丟銅仔」為鋼琴獨奏曲,並委託林佳靜為該曲作處女演出,高盈真也在演出後,和林佳靜一起謝幕。
許惠敏, 世界新聞網 (World Journal)
[Feature] Meeting Of The Muses
The collaborative project "New Works." The "New Works" is a collaborative project with composers, singers, actors, dancers and visual artists from Peabody Conservatory, Preparatory, and the Baltimore community, mentored by distinguished guest artist Martha Clarke.
Sarah Achenbach, Peabody Magazine
Benterghansa as pianist in the work by Ying-Chen Kao called “Toccata” for Viola and Piano. Shao-Chien was violist. Both Chien and Banterghansa’s playing was passionate, expressive, and dynamically balanced throughout their performance. The first part of the toccata crackled with emotional fire, and the second part contained some bold double-stopping for the viola that let into a delicate pizzicato passage that ended the second part. The third part began with Banterghansa plucking the string inside her piano. This was an accomplished performance of a challenging and rich work.
Pat Leitch, Coral Gables Gazette
[Feature] Finding Their Voice
Composition “Solitary” commissioned by Andrew Talle, who chairs Peabody’s Musicology Department and teaches at both Peabody and the Hopkins Homewood campus, commissioned the pieces for his undergraduate course focusing on historic premières.
Brett McCabe (arts editor at Baltimore City Paper), Peabody Magazine
長號手蔡懷恩和鋼琴手高盈真的二重奏...贏來掌聲連連,大家都為台灣有這樣傑出的音樂人才感到自豪
華府大紀元時報 (Epoch Times)
Ying-Chen Kao uses extended notation and technique spans glissandi, slide vibrato, grace notes, pitch bending, and use of a decrescendo with a small circle to portray her equivalence of a niente, conveying a nuanced understanding of the trombones sound palette while exploring some non-standard notation... Although the tenor trombone edition has received more attention, this bass trombone version would make for an excellent intermediate-level contemporary solo piece for advanced high school or early-level university tenor and bass trombone students alike...
Peter Fielding, Online Trombone Journal - ISSN 1093-0485

Perusal and Purchase Scores Online


Frustration Factory for saxophone quartet
Digital Edition available at Warwick Music [SKU: WD166]
Print Edition (Score and Parts): UK | US

Ancient Memory
tenor trombone version
Digital Edition at Warwick Music | Print Edition: UK, US
bass trombone version
Digital Edition at Warwick Music | Print Edition: UK, US

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Selected compositions are available for purchase:
530.623 trio for clarinet, violin and viola
Falling Still for cello and piano
Formosa, the Old Train for solo piano
Lilac . Star . Bird for solo guitar
Spanish Rhapsody for piano

Arrangements:
Hallelujah Chorus by George Frideric Handel
arranged for High Voice, Brass Quintet, and Organ. [Sheetmusic Plus] [Sheetmusic Direct]
He is Exalted by Twila Paris arranged for Piano Quintet. [Sheetmusic Plus] [Sheetmusic Direct]
Jeeves And Wooster-Opening Theme by Anne Dudley
arranged for Trumpet, Violin, Piano, and Drum Set (optional). [Sheetmusic Plus] [Sheetmusic Direct]

 

For general inquiries, commissions, scores/audio samples, performances, please fill out the contact form below.