JON LIN CHUA
COMPOSER
"In an hour-long film scripted by Jesvin Yeo and directed by Eric Wong, the subjects of giant joss stick-making and Teochew embroidery were sensitively handled in the orchestral scores Scent Of Reminiscence by Liong Kit Yeng and Iridescent Threads respectively by Ding Yi composer-in-residence Jon Lin Chua.
The preludes – Liong’s Handicrafts and Chua’s Heartcrafts – were easily relatable and created the right mood for recounting poignant personal stories of third-generation artisans Albert Tay and Jeffrey Eng.
[...]
More fortunate were Eng’s embroidery endeavours, the comforting clatter of his trusty Singer sewing machine being skilfully dovetailed into Chua’s music with Yvonne Tay’s guzheng providing a mirror-like counterpoint."
"Where Sharpley’s Life segued into Jon Lin Chua Sisyphus’s Dilemma, the second work, was not clearly demarcated, but that did not matter given the performance’s seamless flow
When does infancy end and childhood begin, or when does adulthood follow adolescence? Does anybody really care? The soundscapes had thus far been mostly atonal, but Life also afforded stretches of melody and harmony, such as jazzy riffs of ostinatos led by piano and percussion or the sheer aural beauty of Niranjan Pandian’s bansuri (Indian flute) partnered with Brian Lim’s suling (Balinese flute). These alternating episodes seemed to represent cycles of frenetic activity and temporary respite, as if one’s existence looped in endless and ever-repetitive cycles."
"Composer of the Month", Composers Society of Singapore, 13 December 2022
Article on the Composers Society of Singapore Website
Lai Chat with DF Livestream #11, Drum Feng
19 July 2022
Quek Yong Siu, Lianhe Zaobao
9 June 2022
Terence Ho, The Straits Times
6 June 2022
96.3好FM, radio interview
18 May 2022
Zhang Heyang, Lianhe Zaobao
7 May 2022
Terence Ho, Lianhe Zaobao
26 April 2022
Ding Yi Music Company Press Release: Appointment as Composer-in-Residence, 6 May 2022
Press Release in English
中文新闻稿
Chang Tou Liang, 20 December 2021
"A larger mixed ensemble converged for young Singaporean composer Jon Lin Chua’s Princess Miao Shan, a symphonic poem receiving its Singapore premiere. Inspired by the legend of how Guanyin Boddhisatva (the Goddess of Mercy) came to be, it is a colourful melange of sound beginning tumultuously and a suona solo. Despite its modern idiom, there was still room for a big melody evoking the open country and broad landscapes. Percussion provided the dramatics and a poignant dizi solo paved the way for music which portrayed profound sadness and tragedy, representing the ultimate sacrifice the eponymous princess was to make. Ending quietly rather than in the customary blaze of glory gave the work an extra dimension of sobriety it needed."
Ding Yi Music Company Symposium: Compositional Devices of Chinese vs. Western Music, 18 December 2021
Toh Wen Li, The Straits Times, 15 July 2021
Interview with Patty Chan of Centre for Music Innovations, 12 July 2021
Liu Bin, Lianhe Zaobao, 12 November 2020
Chang Tou Liang, The Straits Times, 16 October 2020
"Chua Jon Lin’s Reminiscences of Yuan Xiao was the winner of Composium 2018, the international composition competition for Chinese chamber ensemble organised by Ding Yi. Although yuan xiao is the traditional eve of the Lunar New Year, this was not a work of raucous celebration but one of quiet reflection and solitude. Her source was traditional nanyin chamber music of Southern China, over which this otherworldly and beautiful nocturne was founded. The xiao, pipa, sheng and sanxian (three-stringed lute) were evocatively employed, with the last having the final word."
The Straits Times, 16 October 2020
CSS Composer of the Month for May 2020: Interview with Emily Koh of the Composers Society of Singapore
26 May 2020
"...Jon Lin Chua's (Singapore) subtle and distinctly inflorescent Mind Monkey (2017) for percussion trio..."
Chen Yu Xin, Lianhe Zaobao, 26 June 2018
Chen Yu Xin, Lianhe Zaobao, 7 August 2018
“Votes for Women!” Two Eastman concerts celebrate 100 years of women's suffrage in New York state
2 March 2017
"The concert also includes two newly-commissioned works by two Eastman women composers, Jessie Chang and Jon Lin Chua,"
Chang Tou Liang, The Straits Times, 29 September 2015
"...Chua Jon Lin's Seven Miniatures, interesting character pieces that displayed influences by Satie, Bartok and Ligeti among others."
"Jon Lin Chua’s “White Moon,” (for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano) was inspired by poems by Sylvia Plath. In turn, poet Kathleen Nicastro wrote her poem that she read, inspired by the titles of Chua’s movements, 1. The Night Dances, Dulling and Stilling, 2. The Warm Mist of your Sleep, and 3. Ariel. Chua’s work can be heard on Soundcloud, here, with the same excellent performers; I recommend it. The musical language ranges from stark, spare and hushed to lush, soaring chromaticism, to vigorous pentatonic arpeggios. It builds to an exciting, percussive ending."