bio, bio, bio!

Biography (EN - short)

Diana is the recipient of the 2015 National Arts Council Singapore’s Young Artist Award and the 2017 Impuls composition competition.

Described as “a composer to follow” (France Musique), Diana Soh is one of today’s most exciting young artists. A multi-disciplinary Singaporean composer based in Paris, she has written for a wide range of instrumentation and disciplines from chamber music to orchestra, dance, film, choral and vocal music, and multi-media site-specific works.

Notable highlights include A is for Aiyah with soprano Elise Chauvin as the soloist, which was premiered in Singapore by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (2018), as well as her string quartet sssh with the Mettis Quartet at the Aix en Provence Festival (2018). Diana also wrote the monodrama ‘Zylan ne chantera plus’ with writer Yann Verburgh and staged by Richard Brunel as part of “Opera de Lyon - hors les murs” initiative. It was first performed in November 2021, just shortly after Diana’s Viola duo ‘My other self’ premiered at the Grand Théâtre de Provence as part of the ‘Nouveaux Horizons’ festival.

Her upcoming seasons see her continuing her adventure in the world of music theatre with two operas: Tragic Ways of Killing a Woman, which will be premiered at Festival Aix en Provence in the summer of 2023, and The Carmen Case at the TAP (Poitiers) in May 2023, a co-commission from La Chapelle Musicale, ensemble Ars Nova, the Gulbenkian Foundation and Théâtre du Luxembourg in collaboration with Ensemble Lucillin.

Biography (EN - long)

Described as “a composer to follow” (France Musique), Diana Soh is one of today’s most exciting young artists. A multi-disciplinary Singaporean composer based in Paris, she has written for a wide range of instrumentation and disciplines from chamber music to orchestra, dance, film, choral and vocal music, and multi-media site specific works.

Diana’s musical interest is directed at exploring performance interactivity and obtaining specific sound colours from the intimate collaboration with performers. Known for her interest in theatre and integrating the use of technology, she often surprises her audiences and finds unique ways to address the social issues of our time in her work and “composes the impossible” (Concert Classic).

Notable highlights include A is for Aiyah with soprano Elise Chauvin as the soloist, which was premiered in Singapore by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (2018), as well as her string quartet sssh with the Mettis Quartet at the Aix en Provence Festival (2018). Diana also wrote the monodrama Zylan ne chantera plus with writer Yann Verburgh and staged by Richard Brunel as part of “Opera de Lyon - hors les murs” initiative. It was first performed in November 2021, just shortly after Diana’s Viola duo My other self premiered at the Grand Théâtre de Provence as part of the ‘Nouveaux Horizons’ festival.

Her upcoming seasons see her continuing her adventure in the world of music theatre with two operas: Tragic Ways of Killing a Woman, which will be premiered at Festival Aix en Provence in the summer of 2023, and The Carmen Case at the TAP (Poitiers) in May 2023, a co-commission from La Chapelle Musicale, Ensemble Ars Nova, the Gulbenkian Foundation and Théâtre du Luxembourg in collaboration with Ensemble Lucillin.

Her exploration of vocal writing continues with Tu es Magique for the Maîtrise de Radio France as part of the 2022 Festival Présences and a commission for Vocal Ensemble Sequenza 93 as part of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Other projects include a solo voice pieces La Ville-Zizi for Laura Bowler and Unbroken for Rosie Middleton. Diana will also be working on an organ solo commissioned by the Philharmonie de Paris for Thomas Lacôte as well as a piece for chamber ensemble and electronics titled Of the spaces between for Ensemble Æquilibrium in Singapore.

Since establishing herself in Paris, Diana was Composer-in-Residence for two years (2012-13) at the National Centre for Creation - La Muse en Circuit, which concluded with a one-hour monographic concert of her works during the 2013 Festival Extension. In 2019, she was Composer-in-Residence with Divertimento Ensemble and released her first monographic CD, Still, Yet, And Again, under the Italian label Stradivarius.
Her works have been broadcast internationally on WDR, ORF, Danish Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Radio 3 and France Musique. They have been performed by ensembles such as Ensemble Court-Circuit, Klangforum Wien, Arditti Quartet, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Athelas Sinfonietta Copenhagen, BIT20 Ensemble, Mettis Quartet, Quartet Adastra, SYC Ensemble Singers, Les Métaboles, Ensemble Berlin PianoPercussion, Ensemble Phoenix Basel, E-MEX Ensemble, Trio KDM, Helsinki Chamber Choir, Ensemble Multilatérale, Ensemble Lucillin, Schallfeld Ensemble, Ensemble 2E2M, and championed by flautist Emmanuelle Ophèle and soprano Elise Chauvin, as well as conductors such as Jean Deroyer, Pierre-André Valade, and Sandro Gorli.

Diana Soh studied at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory in Singapore with Peter Edwards and Ho Chee Kong, at the University at Buffalo with Jeff Stadelman, David Felder, and Tony Arnold (conducting), and IRCAM with Mauro Lanza. She has also participated in masterclasses and workshops with Péter Eötvös, Wolfgang Rihm, Salvatore Sciarrino, Brian Ferneyhough, Isabel Mundry, Misato Mochizuki, and Beat Furrer. Diana is the recipient of the 2015 National Arts Council Singapore’s Young Artist Award and the 2017 Impuls composition competition. She has received commissions from several prestigious institutions and festivals including the Barlow Endowment for Music, Festival d’Aix en Provence, IRCAM, Ministry of Culture France and Abbaye de Royaumont Foundation, and Klang Festival Copenhagen, amongst many others.

Biography  (EN - alternative)

Diana Soh (b. 1984) is a composer whose works span from choral music, opera, orchestral and chamber works to interactive electronic music. She graduated from Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, National University of Singapore in 2007 and completed her doctoral studies in Music Theory and Composition at the University at Buffalo, New York, in 2013. She also spent two years at the highly selective IRCAM Cursus programme (2011-2013) honing her skills in computer music programming.

Known for integrating interactivity, theatre and electronics in her music, her chamber music works such as Arboretum: of myths and trees (2013) reflect her strong musical personality, impressive control of structural ideas and technical mastery. While Diana has notable choral compositions such as Vak (2014), opera remains one of her greatest passions. Her recent involvement includes participation at the Tête-à-tête Festival in London and Aix-en Provence Opera Festival’s workshops. She was also one of six composers for the Out at S.E.A chamber opera project in collaboration with the Peter Eötvös Contemporary Music Foundation. She has also collaborated with French film director Bertrand Bonello.

Diana had participated in highly acclaimed festivals like the Gaudeamus Music Week, Klang Festival Copenhagen, Donaueschinger Musiktage, Royaumont Voix Nouvelles, Acanthes, Manifeste and the Tongyeong International Music Festival where she had the opportunity to understudy and work with internationally acclaimed composers like Brian Ferneyhough, Wolfgang Rihm, Beat Furrer, and Isabel Mundry. She has worked with musical groups including the Arditti Quartet, Ensemble Court Circuit, Ensemble Phoenix Basel.

In 2012, Diana was appointed Composer-in-Residence at the Conservatoire D’ivry sur Seine, France, in partnership with National Center for Musical Creation (La Muse en Circuit). Her works have also been broadcast on Deutschlandfunk, Danish Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Radio 3 and France Musique identifying her as “a composer to follow” (une compositrice à suivre).

Diana has recently won the Impuls International Composition Competition and is commissioned by Klangforum Wien. She is also in the final selection for the prestigious Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco 2015 Music Composition Prize.

Biographie (FR)

Née en 1984, Diana Soh est une compositrice d’origine singapourienne, basée à Paris. Reconnue pour l’intégration des nouvelles technologies dans son écriture musicale et passionnée par le geste théâtral, Diana Soh adresse des problématiques d’ordre socio-culturel dans sa musique par le biais d’une interaction très poussée avec ses interprètes avec qui elle recherche couleurs et sonorités spécifiques pour ‘composer l’impossible’ (Concert Classic). Décrite comme “un compositeur à suivre” (Diapason) dont la musique est “très énergétique et galvanisante” (ResMusica), Diana a depuis ses débuts glané les récompenses internationales : Young Artist Award (Singapore National Arts Council), Impuls (Autriche) et le Prix 2015 de Composition Musicale (Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco). Diana a reçu des commandes de la Fondation Barlow, Ernst von du Siemens Musikstiftung, Festival d’Aix-enProvence, IRCAM, Ministère français de la Culture, Abbaye de Royaumont, Festival Klang de Copenhague.

Après les commandes importantes comme A is for Aiyah, créée par la soprano Elise Chauvin avec le Singapore Symphony Orchestra et sssh pour le quatuor Mettis au festival d’Aix en Provence, les deux créées en 2018, Diana a composé le monodrame, Zylan ne chantera plus, livret par Yann Verburgh et mis en scène par Richard Brunel, dans le cadre de “Opera de Lyon – hors les murs”, donné pour la première fois en novembre 2021, quelques jours après la création de son duo pour violon-altos, My other self, au Grand Théâtre de Provence (festival ‘Nouveaux Horizons’). Ses projets futurs traduisent la poursuite de son travail lyrique avec deux opéras : Façons tragiques de tuer une femme, inspiré du livre du même titre, sera donné en première mondiale au festival d’Aix-en-Provence en 2023, Carmen Cour d’assises, une co-commande de La Chapelle Musicale de Bruxelles, ensemble Ars Nova, Fondation Gulbenkian, Théâtre du Luxembourg avec Ensemble Lucillin, conçu en collaboration avec Alexandra Lacroix et Elena Schwarz, revisite la tragédie de la célèbre héroïne et sera créé au TAP de Poitiers en mai 2023.
Elle a, de plus, reçu les commandes de la Maîtrise de Radio France pour le Festival Présences 2022, Tu es Magique, du chœur Sequenza 93 en lien avec les Jeux Olympiques en 2024, de Laura Bowler, future interprète de La Ville-Zizi pour voix seule, Robert EK pour clarinette augmentée, la Philharmonie de Paris (pièce pour orgue qui sera interprétée par Thomas Lacote) ainsi que l’Ensemble Æquilibrium de Singapore (pièce pour ensemble de chambre et electronics, Of the spaces between).

Ses oeuvres ont été diffusées sur les ondes de la WDR, ORF, Danish Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Radio 3 et France Musique et intérprétées par Ensemble Court-Circuit, Klangforum Wien, Orchestre Symphonique de Singapour, Athelas Sinfonietta Copenhagen, Bit20 Ensemble, Quatuor Arditti, Quatuor Mettis, Quatuor Adastra, Chanteurs de l’Ensemble SYC, Les Métaboles, Ensemble Berlin PianoPercussion, Ensemble Phoenix, Ensemble EMEX, Trio KDM, Choeur de Chambre d’Helsinki, Ensemble Multilatérale, Ensemble Lucillin, Schallfeld Ensemble, Ensemble 2E2M, la flûtiste Emmanuelle Orphèle, la soprano Elise Chauvin et les chefs d’orchestreJean Deroyer, Pierre André Valade et Sandro Gorli. Diana Soh a étudié la composition au Conservatoire Yong Siew Toh avec Ho Chee Kong et Peter Edwards, puis à l’Université de Buffalo avec Jeff Stadelman, David Felder et Tony Arnold (direction) et enfin à Paris (IRCAM) avec Mauro Lanza. Elle s’est ensuite perfectionnée auprès de compositeurs reconnus tels que Peter Eötvös, Wolfgang Rihm, Fabio Nieder, Salvatore Sciarrino et Brian Ferneyhough, Isabel Mundry, Misato Mochizuki et Beat Furrer.

Elle débute sa carrière en 2012 en France, où elle est compositrice en résidence au Conservatoire d’Ivry-sur-Seine, en partenariat avec La Muse en Circuit, qu’elle conclut par un concert monographique au Festival Extension, avec le parrainage de l’ARIAM et l’ADIAM 94. Sept ans plus tard, elle renouvelle l’expérience avec l’ensemble Divertimento et sort son premier CD monographique sous le label Stradivarius.

bio, bio, bio!

Biography (EN - short)

Singaporean composer Diana Soh (1984) received her first musical training in piano, voice and composition locally. An alumnus of the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, the University at Buffalo and IRCAM, she has received numerous commissions for orchestral, choral, ensemble and electronic works from prestigious institutions, festivals and ensembles internationally. She has worked with ensembles like Klangforum Wien, the Arditti Quartet, and Ensemble Court Circuit amongst many others.

Biography (EN - long)

Diana Soh was born in 1984 in Singapore and received her first musical training in piano, voice and composition locally. An alumnus of the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory and the University at Buffalo, she has received commissions for orchestral, choral, ensemble, vocal and electronic works from prestigious, institutes, festivals and ensembles in the European contemporary music world. She was the recipient of the 2015 NAC Young Artist Award and the impuls composition competition. Her works have also been broadcasted on Deutschlandfunk (Cologne Radio), ORF (Austrian TV/Radio) Danish Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Radio 3 and France Musique identifying her as “a composer to follow” (une compositrice à suivre).

Her musical interest is currently directed at exploring performance interactivity as well as obtaining specific sound colours from the intimate collaboration with performers. She has collaborated with ensembles like the Arditti Quartet, Ensemble Court Circuit, Ensemble Multilatérale, Athelas Sinfonietta and Klangforum Wien among many others. She has also spent 2 years at IRCAM for a specialised course in computer music and new technologies and was Composer-in-Residence for 2 years (2012 & 2013) at the National Center for Creation - La Muse en Circuit in partnership with Conservatoire d’Ivry sur Seine and Festival Extension. This concluded with a one-hour monographic concert on her works during the 2013 Festival Extension. 

Upcoming projects include a site-specific work for Les Métaboles, E-Mex Ensemble, and for Trio K/D/M, Elise Chauvin (singer), and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Ensemble Court-Circuit. For more information, please visit www.dianasoh.com

Biography  (EN - alternative)

Diana Soh (b. 1984) is a composer whose works span from choral music, opera, orchestral and chamber works to interactive electronic music. She graduated from Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, National University of Singapore in 2007 and completed her doctoral studies in Music Theory and Composition at the University at Buffalo, New York, in 2013. She also spent two years at the highly selective IRCAM Cursus programme (2011-2013) honing her skills in computer music programming.

Known for integrating interactivity, theatre and electronics in her music, her chamber music works such as Arboretum: of myths and trees (2013) reflect her strong musical personality, impressive control of structural ideas and technical mastery. While Diana has notable choral compositions such as Vak (2014), opera remains one of her greatest passions. Her recent involvement includes participation at the Tête-à-tête Festival in London and Aix-en Provence Opera Festival’s workshops. She was also one of six composers for the Out at S.E.A chamber opera project in collaboration with the Peter Eötvös Contemporary Music Foundation. She has also collaborated with French film director Bertrand Bonello.

Diana had participated in highly acclaimed festivals like the Gaudeamus Music Week, Klang Festival Copenhagen, Donaueschinger Musiktage, Royaumont Voix Nouvelles, Acanthes, Manifeste and the Tongyeong International Music Festival where she had the opportunity to understudy and work with internationally acclaimed composers like Brian Ferneyhough, Wolfgang Rihm, Beat Furrer, and Isabel Mundry. She has worked with musical groups including the Arditti Quartet, Ensemble Court Circuit, Ensemble Phoenix Basel.

In 2012, Diana was appointed Composer-in-Residence at the Conservatoire D’ivry sur Seine, France, in partnership with National Center for Musical Creation (La Muse en Circuit). Her works have also been broadcast on Deutschlandfunk, Danish Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Radio 3 and France Musique identifying her as “a composer to follow” (une compositrice à suivre).

Diana has recently won the Impuls International Composition Competition and is commissioned by Klangforum Wien. She is also in the final selection for the prestigious Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco 2015 Music Composition Prize.

Biographie (FR)

Née en 1984, Diana Soh est une compositrice Singapourienne dont l’intérêt musical est actuellement dirigé vers une exploration de l’interaction dans l’interprétation. Sa musique est caractérisée par une opposition entre des surfaces calmes et agitées. Son intérêt est aujourd’hui focalisé sur l’utilisation des nouvelles technologies.

Elle a été récompensée par le Prix du jeune artiste Singapourien en 2015 par The National Arts Council de Singapour, par le prix de composition de impuls festival (Autriche) et elle a également été sélectionnée pour le Prix de Composition Musicale de la Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco en 2015.

Ses oeuvres ont été jouées dans de nombreux festivals comme Ircam/Manifeste, Royaumont dans le cadre de Voix Nouvelles, l’académie Acanthes, les festivals de Donaueschinger Musiktager (Allemagne), June in Buffalo (Etas-Unis), Takefu Festival, Tête-à-tête Opéra Festival (Grande-Bretagne), ainsi que les Unerhorte Musik series (Allemagne), le LSO St. Luke’s (Grande-Bretagne), le Festival KLANG etc. Elle a également été programmée sur la radio 3 de la BBC et sur France Musique.

Elle a eu l’opportunité de travailler avec de nombreux musiciens et ensembles parmi lesquels James Avery, Magnus Andersson, NEO Norbotten, Tony Arnold, l’Ensemble Court Circuit, l’Ensemble Multilérale, le New York New Music Ensemble, le Quatour Arditti, le CIKADA ensemble, Athelas Sinfonietta et Klangforum Wien.

Elle a récemment terminé ses études de doctorat à l’Université de Buffalo sous la tutelle de David Felder et a passé 2 ans à l’IRCAM pour le Cursus 1 et 2 (2011-2013). Elle réside actuellement à Paris et a été compositeur en résidence (2012 - 2013) au Conservatoire d’Ivry-sur-Seine, en partenariat avec La Muse en Circuit. La fin de sa résidence en 2013 a été marquée par son premier concert monographique dans le cadre du Festival Extension, avec le parrainage de l’ARIAM genre et l’ADIAM94.

Sa prochaine saison de concerts se compose de nombreuses créations données en Allemagne, France et Singapour. Elle termine actuellement une commande du Royaumont/Les Métaboles, Ensemble Court-Circuit, et une pièce pour Elise Chauvin et le Singapore Symphony Orchestra.