Ye Xiaogang is a Chinese

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 composer of contemporary classical music

Contemporary classical music

Contemporary classical music can be understood as belonging to the period that started in the mid-1970s with the retreat of modernism. However, the term may also be employed in a broader sense to refer to all post-1945 modern musical forms.-Categorization:...

. He is originally Cantonese but spent his early years in Shanghai

Shanghai

Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

. He studied at the Central Conservatory of Music

Central Conservatory of Music

The Central Conservatory of Music is the national leading music school in Beijing, China.Founded in 1950, the Conservatory offers courses to both Chinese nationals and foreign students, and caters for all levels from primary up to postgraduate programmes...

 in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

 from 1978 to 1983 and at the Eastman School of Music

Eastman School of Music

The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...

 beginning in 1987. His teachers include Alexander Goehr

Alexander Goehr

Alexander Goehr is an English composer and academic.Goehr was born in Berlin in 1932, the son of the conductor and Schoenberg pupil Walter Goehr. In his early twenties he emerged as a central figure in the Manchester School of post-war British composers. In 1955–56 he joined Oliver Messiaen's...

.

He teaches at the Central Conservatory of Music, where he serves as Assistant President and vice dean of the composition department.

His father is the composer Ye Chunzhi.

His Starry Sky was premiered at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics

2008 Summer Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...

 in Beijing. In the summer of 2006, Ye took part in the inaugural "Composer Alive!" transpacific correspondence project with Accessible Contemporary Music in Chicago, Illinois. This project consisted of Ye composing a piece, Datura, and sending its fragments as they were completed to Chicago, electronically. They were subsequently read by ACM's performance ensemble and posted to the Internet for Ye's approval. The project culminated with Ye traveling to the United States for the completed work's premiere performance.

Selected compositions

• Great Wall Symphony
  Great Wall Symphony
  The Great Wall Symphony is a symphony composed by Chinese composer Ye Xiaogang in 2002.The symphony consists of nine movements, with vocal parts. Traditional Chinese musical instruments and folk tunes were used in it....
  
  
• Therenody
• Tripdus
• Ballade
• Shenzhen Story
• Macau Bride
• Dalai VI
• Pipa Concerto
• Nine Horses
• Rise of the Great Powers

External links

• "Ye Xiaogang: Contemporary Composer", CCTV.com. Interview, 2004.
• "High and Low Notes of Life Give Composer His Inspiration", CRIEnglish.com. Article, 2005-11-22 16:37:19.