Weijun received his undergraduate degree in Composition from the Eastman School of Music and his doctorate from the University at Buffalo. Now working as a freelance composer of film and concert music in Los Angeles, his works have been performed by renowned orchestras and chamber ensembles across the United States and China. In this episode, Weijun shares his incredible musical journey from growing up in Shanghai, China, starting composition at the very young age of 13, and moving to the US to study music and pursue a musical career. He also shares about the fascinating world of composing music for video games.

WEIJUN’S EPISODE RESOURCES

Fav Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

Fav Piece of Classical Music: Mahler 6, the slow movement

Fav Movie/Game Soundtrack: Final Fantasy 7 and Jurassic Park

Book Recommendation: Every Good Boy Does Fine by Jeremy Denk

Admired Musician: Jacob Collier

Most Useful App on Phone: WeChat

Final Resource to check out: The real world

Audible Free Trial: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3VXwMWf

Amazon Music Free Trial: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3W1Ttsr

CONNECT WITH WEIJUN

Website: https://www.weijunchen.com

Listen to Weijun’s Music: https://www.weijunchen.com/music

ORCHESTRATING YOUR CAREER 

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaCPf5xynqMHcFuQhCWrNCQ⁠

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/orchestratingyourcareer

Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/orchestratingyourcareer

ABOUT THE HOST

Rebekah Carpio received her BMus in clarinet performance from the Eastman School of Music. She was awarded a Fulbright grant to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in their Orchestral Artistry program, which was in collaboration with the London Symphony Orchestra. She then went on to receive her PhD, also from the Guildhall School, researching the impact of education and community work in conservatoire training. 

CONNECT WITH REBEKAH

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/bitesbybekah

Websites: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bitesbybekah.com⁠⁠⁠

TIMECODES

00:00 Podcast Intro

01:25 Episode Intro

02:02 Start of Interview

02:36 Weijun’s Musical Background

14:26 Applying for Music Schools

18:13 Composition Application Process

21:33 Experience at ESM

25:13 Plans for Post-ESM

25:41 The Traditional Composer Career Pathway

27:05 Going straight into a PhD

30:54 Aspen

34:05 Post PhD Studies

36:04 Visa Process After Graduating

37:33 One Way Ticket to LA

43:36 Learning from the Real World

44:10 Orchestrating Film Music

47:14 Composer Equipment

49:04 Transitioning into Career

50:29 Composing for Video Games

58:07 Getting a Brief

1:07:52 Current Career + Looking Ahead

1:13:25 Rapid Fire Q&A

1:22:02 Connect with Weijun

1:22:29 Episode Outro

1:23:54 Weijun’s Musical Score

MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE

Theme Music composed by Ben Roundtree: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0z6dZJL6GM⁠

PHOTO CREDIT

ESM

University at Buffalo

Nobou Uematsu

Jacob Collier

*OYC participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means to earn fees by linking to ⁠Amazon.com⁠ and affiliated sites. Thank you for your support!