Vivian Fung (born 1975) is a JUNO Award-winning Canadian composer who writes music for orchestras, operas, quartets, and piano. Her compositions have been performed internationally.
Early life and education Fung was born in Edmonton, Alberta. She wrote her first compositions at age 7. She began studies with Violet Archer and later studied with Narcis Bonet in Paris. She received her bachelor's degree, masters, and doctorate from The Juilliard School in New York City in 1996, 1997, and 2002, respectively. Her composition mentors included David Diamond and Robert Beaser, piano mentors included György Sándor and Ernesto Lejano, and conducting mentor was Miguel Harth-Beyoda.
Career NPR calls Fung "one of today's most eclectic composers," and The Philadelphia Inquirer said she has a "stunningly original compositional voice" through her use of blending Western musical forms with musical ideas from many cultures, including Balinese and Javanese gamelan, and folk songs from minority regions of China.
Fung travels often, exploring the diverse cultures of North Vietnam, Spain, and Bali, Indonesia. In 2012, Fung traveled to Southwest China for ethno-musicological research to study minority music and cultures in the Yunnan province. It was a continuation of the research that previously inspired "Yunnan Folk Songs" (2011). The project was commissioned by Fulcrum Point New Music in Chicago with support from the MAP Fund. After the world premiere in March 2011 of Fung's work "Yunnan Folk Songs", The Chicago Tribune wrote, "'Yunnan Folk Songs' stood out ... [with] a winning rawness that went beyond exoticism."
Fung has been the composer-in-residence of the Delaware Chamber Music Festival, the Music in the Loft chamber music series in Chicago, the San Jose Chamber Orchestra, and the Billings Symphony. She also completed residencies at the MacDowell, Yaddo, and Banff arts colonies, as well as residencies at National Sawdust, Alba Music Festival Composition Program, New York State School Music Association, Mostly Modern Festival Institute, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra School of Music, National Orchestra Institute + Festival, and Atlantic Center for the Arts.
In 2012, the Naxos Canadian Classics label released the world premiere recording of Fung's "Violin Concerto #1", her "Piano Concerto (Dreamscapes)", and "Glimpses" for prepared piano, with the Metropolis Ensemble conducted by Andrew Cyr, featuring violinist Kristin Lee, and pianist Conor Hanick. Several of her works have also been released commercially on the Telarc, Çedille, and Signpost labels. Fung's "Violin Concerto" received the 2013 JUNO Award for Classical Composition of the Year.
Fung's "String Quartet No.3" was commissioned by the 11th Banff International String Quartet Competition (BISQC). It was performed by ten string quartets; the American group, the Dover Quartet, won first prize. The Calgary Herald lauded the piece and referred to it as "Dark Journeys". As music critic Stephan Bonfield pointed out, the work is Fung's emotional response to the world conflict during that year, seen from the point of view of her own family's struggles.
Awards Fung has received a number of awards and grants, including the 2012 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, New York Foundation for the Arts’ Gregory Millard Fellowship, and from ASCAP, BMI, the American Music Center, the MAP Fund, Music Alive!, and the League of American Orchestras, American Composers Forum, and the Canada Council for the Arts.
Fung's "Violin Concerto" earned her the 2013 Juno Award for Classical Composition of the Year.Juno Award "Classical Composition of the Year" 2013 Matthew Parsons. "10 pieces by living Canadian composers that you will love". CBC Music, December 16, 2014
Works
Orchestral
Parade (2022) 10' For chamber orchestra. Commissioned by ROCO and premiered by ROCO in Houston, TX on April 29, 2023 Flute Concerto: Storm Within (2021) 20' Versions available for flute solo with chamber orchestra and full orchestra. Commissioned by Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. Premiered by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra on November 11, 2022. Prayer (2020) 5' For full orchestra. Commissioned by CBC Music in collaboration with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Premiered by Yannick Nézet-Séguin and 35 musicians representing 26 orchestras across Canada on June 22, 2020. Trumpet Concerto (2019) 15' For trumpet and chamber orchestra. Commissioned by Mary Elizabeth Bowden and a consortium of orchestras. Premiered by Mary Elizabeth Bowden and the Erie Philharmonic on March 7, 2020. A Child's Dream of Toys (2018) 11' For full orchestra. Commissioned by Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and premiered as part of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra New Music Festival on January 30, 2019. Concerto for Two Violins and String Orchestra (2018) 15' For two solo violins and strings. Commissioned by Manitoba Chamber Orchestra and premiered on March 19, 2019. Earworms (2018) 12' For full orchestra. Commissioned by Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra and premiered March 22, 2018 in Ottawa and Toronto, Canada. Baroque Melting (2017) 6' For harpsichord and divisi strings. Commissioned by San José Chamber Orchestra and premiered on October 8, 2017. Launch! (2016) 2' For full orchestra. Commissioned by Toronto Symphony Orchestra and premiered on February 4, 2017. Biennale Snapshots (2015) 23' For full orchestra. Commissioned for the Vancouver Biennale, in celebration of the 2014-2016 Open Air Museum installations. Premiered by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra on September 26 and 28, 2015. Graffiti Mashup (2015) 7' For full orchestra. Commissioned for the Vancouver Biennale, in celebration of the 2014-2016 Open Air Museum installations. Premiered by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra on September 26 and 28, 2015. Violin Concerto No. 2: Of Snow and Ice (2014) 24' For violin and full orchestra. Commissioned by Toronto Symphony Orchestra and premiered on February 28, 2015. Fanfare (2014) 6' For full orchestra. Commissioned by Alabama Symphony and premiered February 2014. Harp Concerto (2013) 22' For harp, percussion, and strings. Co-commissioned by Alabama Symphony, Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Metropolis Ensemble, The Phillips Collection, and San José Chamber Orchestra and premiered by Alabama Symphony on February 5, 2014. Aqua (2012) 5' For full orchestra. Commissioned by the Chicago Sinfonietta and premiered on June 8–9, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. Dust Devils (2011, rev. 2014) 10' For full orchestra. Commissioned by Eastern Music Festival for their 50th anniversary and premiered on July 30, 2011, in Greensboro, NC. Violin Concerto No. 1 (2011) 21' For violin and chamber orchestra. Commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble and premiered September 15, 2011 in New York. Piano Concerto: Dreamscapes (2009) 25' For piano and chamber orchestra. Commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble and premiered on November 19–20, 2009 in Le Poisson Rouge, New York. String Sinfonietta (2008, rev. 2011) 18' For string orchestra. Commissioned by San José Chamber Orchestra and premiered May 2008. Butterfly Variations (2005) 18'. For string orchestra. Part of Music Alive! composer-in-residence program with San José Chamber Orchestra, co-sponsored by Meet the Composer and the American Symphony Orchestra League. Pizzicato (2001) 4' Third movement of string quartet, arranged for string orchestra. Premiered by San José Chamber Orchestra December 2001 Three Love Songs in Chinese (2001) 12'. For soprano and chamber orchestra. Text: Chinese Love Poetry in Mandarin Concertino Notturno (1999) 15'. For solo flute, harpsichord, and strings. Commissioned by San José Chamber Orchestra and premiered June 2001. Blaze (1998) 13' For full orchestra. Commissioned by Seattle Symphony Orchestra and premiered May 4, 1998.
Large Ensembles
Indigenous Rites: Concerto for baritone saxophone and brass band (2013) 13' For baritone saxophone and brass band. Commissioned by the Hannaford Street Silver Band and premiered October 20, 2013 in Toronto, Ontario. Gamelan Grunge (2012) 8' Arrangement of Kreasi Mekanis Mainan ("Mechanical Toys"). Premiered September 2012 by CONTACT Contemporary Ensemble in Toronto, Ontario. Kreasi Mekanis Mainan ("Mechanical Toys") (2012) 8' For samara dana gamelan ensemble. Commissioned by Queens College, Gamelan Yowana Sari and premiered December 2012 at Queens College, New York. The Shaman Speaks (2009, rev. 2012) 4' Written for clarinet choir, arranged for saxophone choir. Premiered December 2012 by the University of Toronto saxophone choir.
Chamber Music
Down and Dirty for clarinet and piano (2023) 18' Commissioned by Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival and premiered August 11, 2023. Ominous Machine II for 2 piano and 2 percussion (2022-2023) 14' Commissioned by the Network for New Music and premiered May 7, 2023 at the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia, PA. Ominous Machine for piano trio (2021) 5' Premiered November 7, 2023 at the San Francisco Conservatory. String Quartet No. 5 (2021) 13'30" Commissioned by Lafayette String Quartet and premiered February 11, 2022 at the University of Victoria, British Columbia. Sparks for flute, yangqin, and percussion (2021) 11' Commissioned and premiered by Tangram Collective in 2022. Corona Morphs for pierrot ensemble and percussion (2021) 15' Commissioned by Standing Wave Ensemble and premiered November 29, 2021 in Vancouver. (Un)Wandering Souls for percussion quartet (2021) 3' Commissioned by Cambodian Living Arts and Metropolis Ensemble and premiered March 18, 2021. String Quartet No. 4 "Insects and Machines" (2019) 12' Commissioned by Red Bank Chamber Music Society and premiered by the American String Quartet on May 5, 2019. Shifting Landscapes for string quartet (2018) 4' Commissioned by Ensemble Made in Canada. Frenetic Memories for clarinet and string quartet (2017) 15' Commissioned by The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, and Chamber Music Northwest. Premiered November 9, 2017. Bounce for French horn, violin, and piano (2016) 12' Commissioned by Women's Musical Club of Toronto and premiered November 24, 2016. Twist for violin and guitar (2014) 13' Commissioned by Astral Artists and premiered April 25, 2014 in Philadelphia, PA. The Voices Inside My Head for percussion (2014) 15' Commissioned by the Bowdoin International Music Festival and premiered August 6, 2014. String Quartet No. 3 (2013) 10' Commissioned by the Banff Centre and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and premiered August 26-September 1, 2013. Birdsong for violin and piano (2012) 10' Commissioned by the Delaware Chamber Music Festival and premiered June 22, 2012. Javanese Court Song for flute and piano (2011) 3' Commissioned by the New Jersey Music Teachers' Association. String Quartet No. 2 (2009) 18' Commissioned by Shanghai Quartet and premiered April 23, 2009 in Washington D.C. Billy Collins Suite for clarinet, cello, and piano (2008, rev. 2016) 12' Commissioned by Music in the Loft (MILT), John Bruce Yeh, and the Lincoln Trio. Premiered May 4, 2008. Miniatures for clarinet and string quartet (2005, rev. 2016) 13' Commissioned by Music in the Loft and premiered November 19, 2005 in Chicago, IL. Night Impressions for traditional Chinese instruments (2005) 18' Commissioned by Music from China and premiered November 5, 2005. String Quartet No. 1 (2003) 18' Commissioned by Composer Assistance Program of the American Music Center and premiered January 24, 2004 in Columbus, OH. Chanted Rituals for trumpet/flugelhorn and percussion (2002) 14' Commissioned by The Modern Trio and premiered April 28, 2002 in Lausanne, Switzerland. Pizzicato for string quartet (2001) 4' Commissioned by Composer Assistance Program of the American Music Center and premiered January 24, 2004 in Columbus, OH. Scherzo for piano trio (1998) 4' Commissioned by Friends of Today's Music