Chao-Ming Tung is a Taiwanese-born composer and gu-zheng player (Chinese zither) based in Cologne, Germany. His music encompasses stage, instrumental, vocal, and electro-acoustic works, and multimedia-performances with visual arts and dance. Since 2000 he has gradually incorporated Chinese instruments into his music, and improvises with gu-zheng and live electronics in concerts.
In 1988 he began composition studies with Chien Nan-Chang in the Chinese-Culture-University Taipei. He continued his training from 1990 -1997 at the Musikhochschule Köln Germany with Johannes Fritsch and Mauricio Kagel, and later at the Folkwang-Hochschule Essen with Nicolaus A. Huber, where he graduated with distinction. Since 1999 he has worked as a freelance composer and musician, and facilitates East-West cultural exchanges.
Tung's work has been presented in concerts of numerous festivals throughout Europe, Asia, and the USA. He has collaborated with choreographers, dancers, painters, musicians, ensembles, sound-, media- and video artists, e.g. Annegret Heiln, René Pieters, Bernhard Gal, Klang Forum Wien, Ensemble Ictus, Ensemble Modern, ensemble 2e2m, Ensemble On-Line Vienna , ensemble DEDALO, and China Found Music Workshop Taipei.
He was awarded the Bernd Alois Zimmermann Scholarship for Composers from the City of Cologne in 1999, the Scholarship of National Culture and Arts Foundation Taiwan in 2001 and the Scholarship of Villa Aurora Los Angles, second award of international Xu Chang Hui composition competition Taiwan.
He is a composer in residence of China Found Music Workshop Taipei since 2006 and guest professor for composition at the National Ciao Tung University 2007.
