Chou Wen-chung

Chou Wen-chung (July 28, 1923 – October 25, 2019) was a Chinese American composer of contemporary classical music.

Chou attended Guangxi University during 1942–44 and managed to find time to compose music on his own and to educate himself about Western culture through reading library books despite the nightly air raids and the demands of his studies in civil engineering.

Due to the vicissitudes of war, Chou had to move again in 1944 and continued his study in Chongqing University where he received his B.S. degree in civil engineering.

He emigrated in 1946 to the United States and received his music training at the New England Conservatory and Columbia University.

Chou is credited by Nicolas Slonimsky as one of the first Chinese composers who attempted to translate authentic East Asian melo-rhythms into the terms of modern Western music.

Chou was born in Yantai (Chefoo), Shandong.

He grew up in China and developed an early love for music.

("Sights and Sounds" is an essay by Chou on early influences on his music.) Qin music, in particular, has proved fertile ground for his future exploration.

Chou described his early explorations of musical instruments:

"While in Qingdao, I first discovered the meaning of music in life when I heard our household help enjoying their free time by playing instruments, singing, and drinking. I also became fascinated with harmonium pedals, which I played with at first as a car accelerator, and then discovered their dynamic effect... However, it was in Wuhan that I discovered the violin when my older brothers and I bought a child-size violin as a toy. My oldest brother, Wen-tsing, immediately began taking lessons and recruited me as his 'student'! I played the erhu, studied the violin and taught myself a medley of instruments, such as mandolin, harmonica and musical saw."

During the Second World War, he was persuaded to study civil engineering to help modernize China.

After high school, Chou studied Architecture at Saint John's University, Shanghai in China.

Chou stated in his biography, "I chose architecture as a compromise between art and science, largely influenced by John Ruskin's comment on architecture as 'frozen music.'" Within one semester, Chou's study was interrupted because of the breakout of World War II and Chou had to relocate and continued his study in Guangxi University and Chongqing University.

In 1946, Chou turned down a scholarship in architecture at Yale University in order to pursue music, studying with Nicolas Slonimsky at the New England Conservatory and with Edgard Varèse and Otto Luening in New York.

Chou studied composition with Otto Luening at Columbia University and from 1949–1954, took lessons privately with Edgard Varèse who became a lifelong mentor and friend.

Synthesizing western and eastern sounds has been a pursuit of Chou's throughout his life.

In a conversation with Frank J. Oteri published on NewMusicBox in 2013, Chou described the difficulties he had at that time:

For more than a week, I stayed in my room.

I couldn’t make up my mind whether I really wanted to continue with this scholarship.

Can you believe it?

The only way I could come to this country was to get a scholarship to Yale and register as a student.

So I went to see the dean, saying I had decided not to [continue].

Having [later] been a dean myself, I know how he felt.

But I felt I had no choice.

That shows you another important thing about being an artist.

If you have conviction in your art, you have to be daring.

You don’t care what critics or what other artists would say.

You are going to do it.

You have to understand the risk I took.

I was given a tremendous scholarship.

I didn’t have any other money.

I couldn’t survive.

Besides I would have a problem with the American government, the immigration office, since my visa was based on going to Yale.

But I never thought of those questions.

I took a train back to Boston where my brother lived, and I thought he would really throw me out, or send me back to China.

But no. He picked up a letter and said, “This is your father’s letter.

Read it.” I opened it.

It was my father’s handwriting.

“I know Wen-chung really wants to be a composer, to study music.

If he has to, let him.