Composer Dai Wei’s musical journey navigates in the spaces between east and west, classical and pop, electronic and acoustic, innovation and tradition. She often draws from eastern philosophy and aesthetics to create works with contemporary resonance and reflects on how these multidimensional conflicts and tension can create and inhabit worlds of their own. Her artistry is nourished by the Asian and Chinese Ethnic cultures in numerous ways. Being an experimental vocalist, she also performs herself as a Khoomei throat singer.
Among her extensive credits, Wei was awarded CANOA Commission (Composing a New Orchestra Audience) from the American Composer Orchestra Underwood New Music Reading and her work Invisible Portals for chamber orchestra was premiered under that baton of Marin Alsop at Carnegie Hall in 2022. Her orchestral work Samsaric Dance was featured at New Jersey Symphony Orchestra’s Edward Cone Composition Institute in 2022. Wei was featured in The Washington Post’s “22 for 22’: Composers and Performers to Watch this Year.”
During the centralized quarantine, Wei wrote a piece for solo violin and electronics called Song for Shades of Crimson, which was dedicated to people who have died from coronavirus. It was premiered by violinist Todd Reynolds at the Bang on a Can 2020 Marathon. She served as Young Artist Composer-in-Residence at Music from Angel Fire and Composer Fellow at Intimacy of Creativity in Hong Kong. Other projects have included commissions and collaborations from orchestras and ensembles such as the Utah Symphony Orchestra, Curtis Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, San Diego Youth Symphony, Aizuri String Quartet, and the Rock School of Ballet in Philadelphia. Her compositions have been broadcast by WRTI, Performance Today, WHYY, Shanghai Dragon Television, Radio Television Hong Kong, and Qinghai Television.
Wei collaborated with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia under the direction of Dirk Brossé for two consecutive years, with which she performed as a vocalist and made her premiere at Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. She has also performed her own compositions at the Bang on a Can Summer Festival, New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival, International Computer Music Conference, World Saxophone Congress, and North American Saxophone Alliance.
Wei is currently pursuing a doctorate in Music Composition at Princeton University as a Naumburg Fellow. She holds an Artist Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music. After she finished her B.A. in Music Composition at the Xinghai Conservatory of Music in China, Wei came to the United States and earned an M.M. in Music Composition at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Special thanks to our Sponsors:
Premiere Sponsors – Anna Butturini, Justus + Elizabeth Schlichting, and Anne-Marie Spataru
Score Sponsors – June Li, Nancy + Barry Sanders, Greg Soukup + Mary Jo Carr, and Joan Wynn
YOUR $500 SOUND INVESTMENT MEMBERSHIP INCLUDES
- Invitation for three salon events plus a special orchestral reading with Dai Wei
- Tickets for two to the world premiere on May 10, 2025
- An autographed copy of the commemorative score
LACO also offers an Introductory Membership Level at $250 for a first-time Sound Investor, as well as a $50 Student Membership. To take advantage of this special rate or for more information about joining Sound Investment, contact Laura Goodall, at (213) 622-7001, EXT. 224 or lauragoodall@laco.org.
Sound Investment salon dates:
#1 – Thursday, September 12 at 7:00 P.M.
#2 – Thursday, December 5 at 7:00 P.M.
#3 – Thursday, February 13 at 7:00 P.M.
#4 – Thursday, May 8 at 7:00 P.M.
