
Bio
Ding Sng is a multi-style violinist, composer and producer from Singapore. His music fuses his contemporary jazz and classical education with his cultural heritage: the folk melodies and polyphonic textures of Southeast Asian folk music. He is a firm believer in the future and the importance of traditional music in a contemporary setting.
featured projects
PERFORMANCE REEL
Image Gallery

with fellow musicians at Silkroad's Global Musician Workshop!


with the band performing music from the Balkans at the Diocesan Convention!


with the band for the first album!

my story

Hi there! My name is Ding and it’s great to meet you.
I come from a family of entrepreneurs, and my childhood was filled with games, from building legos to video games, to sports, to drawing comics and making games with my twin brother. I had never intended to become a musician.
I first started learning the violin when I was about 7 or 8, from my cousin Yi Xi who was 12 years my senior. Being in a highly competitive environment and the first musician in my family, I was taught to feel behind. However, in hindsight, I had such a rich musical education in the form of my surroundings: the Teochew Opera and Getai shows that I would watch with my grandparents, being exposed to Javanese Gamelan, Western classical music and Chinese Orchestra in school, and the video game soundtracks from JRPGs my brothers and I loved that fused classical, jazz and even world music influences.
It was my desire to perform beloved video game soundtracks from Final Fantasy IX with my brother that led me to arranging music for the violin.
I experienced my first burnout with the violin when I was 15, and felt through with classical music. It was only after I “quit” that I started improvising and composing music in a free way. I don’t think that I would have started exploring composition if I hadn’t quit the violin at the time.
Even then, I never had the intention of pursuing music. It was a call from a teacher, Dr Gooi, that convinced me that my own art is worth pursuing and of my own potential. I ended up sticking with A-Level music and choosing a composition path because of his advice.
Even so, it took going through the military, working several part-time jobs, finishing a degree in music and sharing countless musical experiences from people all over the world to make me realize that being a musician and composer is what I really want to do.
Thank you for reading my story and allowing me to share a bit of my world with you. After all this time, I guess what I’m trying to say is that music isn’t about perfection – but honesty.
LESSONS
I offer lessons in person and over zoom in:
- Violin Technique
- Classical, Jazz and World Music Styles
- Improvisation
- Music Composition and Arranging
- Western Classical and Jazz Harmony
If interested in a trial lesson, please feel free to reach out to me at dingdoesmusic@gmail.com
CONTACT
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