Taiwan Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble Announces “From Formosa” U.S. Tour

Taiwan Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble Announces
“From Formosa” U.S. Tour

©Luo Wun Jie

Celebrating Taiwanese American Heritage Month with World Premieres and Cross-Cultural Collaborations

NEW YORK, NY — April 14, 2026 — The chamber ensemble from Taiwan Philharmonic embarks on its 2026 U.S. tour, “From Formosa,” with performances in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and New York, May 15–19. “From Formosa” celebrates Taiwanese American Heritage Month through a richly curated program of world premieres, Taiwanese masterworks, and cross-cultural collaborations.

An elite group of musicians led by Taiwan Philharmonic Concertmaster Hao-Tun Teng, the chamber ensemble will present performances that feature acclaimed pianist Chun-Chieh Yen and the soulful voices of Taiwan’s Taiwu Ballads Troupe. The tour highlights a distinctive artistic vision that bridges Western chamber music traditions with the cultural heritage of Taiwan and its Indigenous communities. The performances take place at Thayer Hall, at Colburn School in Los Angeles; Camelback Bible Church in Phoenix; and Merkin Hall, at Kaufman Music Center in New York City.

A defining feature of “From Formosa” is the collaboration with Taiwu Ballads Troupe — one of Taiwan’s leading indigenous vocal ensembles, dedicated to preserving and performing music from the Paiwan, an indigenous people of Taiwan. In addition, the Phoenix concert features Native American flutist R. Carlos Nakai, creating a powerful artistic dialogue between Taiwanese and Native American traditions.

“The Taiwan Philharmonic has long been committed to building meaningful cultural bridges through music,” said Dr. Lydia Wen-Chen Kuo, Executive Director of the Taiwan Philharmonic. “Following our previous international tours, ‘From Formosa’ gives us the timely opportunity to share Taiwan’s artistic voice in the United States during Taiwanese American Heritage Month. These collaborations with indigenous artists from both countries reflect shared histories, traditions, and a deeply personal connection that transcends borders.”

Program Highlights

“From Formosa” weaves together traditional and contemporary voices in a program that reflects Taiwan’s cultural diversity and artistic innovation. Highlights include:

• Taiwanese indigenous polyphonic songs

• Taiwanese Indigenous Music for String Quartet & Chorus (arr. by Ting-Chuan Chen)

• Ke-Chia Chen: Silver Fields for Piano Quintet (world premiere, commissioned by Muzik 3 Foundation)

• Tyzen Hsiao: The Highlander’s Suite for Piano Quintet

• Yun-Jou Chen: Terra/ Liturgy for String Quartet (world premiere, commissioned by Hakka Affairs Council)

• Aaron Copland: Two Pieces for String Quartet

• James DeMars: Lake That Speaks for Native American Flute and Cello 

• Amazing Grace for Native American and Chamber Ensemble (arr. by Billy Williams) 

Together, these works explore themes of identity, heritage, and cultural continuity, placing Taiwanese and indigenous traditions in dialogue with the Western classical canon.

Artists

The Taiwan Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble:

• Hao-Tun Teng, violin

• Yi-Ju Chen, violin

• Jubel Chen, viola

• Yi-Shien Lien, cello

• Chun-Chieh Yen, piano

With special guest artists:

• Taiwu Ballads Troupe

• R. Carlos Nakai, Native American flute (Phoenix performance, May 17)

Los Angeles, CA
May 15, 2026 at 7 PM
Colburn School, Thayer Hall
Presented by Colburn School
Tickets: https://colburnschool.edu/calendar/events/from-formosa-taiwan-philharmonic-chamber-ensemble-2026-us-tour/

Phoenix, AZ
May 17, 2026 at 3 PM
Doors Open at 2 PM (Taiwanese Pop-up Fair starts in the church lobby)
Camelback Bible Church
Tickets*: http://taiwanphoenix.org
*Each ticket can be redeemed for $10 worth of souvenirs at the Taiwanese Pop-up Fair.

New York, NY
May 19, 2026 at 7:30 PM
Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center
Tickets: https://www.kaufmanmusiccenter.org/mch/event/from-formosa-taiwan-philharmonic-chamber-ensemble-2026-us-tour/

©Luo Wun Jie

About the Taiwan Philharmonic
Founded in 1986, the Taiwan Philharmonic, also known as the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) at home, has been hailed as one of the best orchestras in Asia. With some of the finest musical talent from at home and abroad, trained at top schools and international orchestras, the NSO enjoys a unique voice rich in diversity and tradition. The NSO's artistic development has been carefully nurtured over the years by music directors Tsang-Houei Hsu, Tah-Sheng Chang, Jahja Ling, Wen-Pin Chien, and Shao-Chia Lü — as well as principal conductors Gerard Akoka and Urs Schneider, and conductor laureate Günther Herbig. Under the leadership of Jun Märkl as the music director since January 2022, the NSO aspires to resonate throughout the world as the cultural ambassador of Taiwan. Music by Taiwanese composers is extensively commissioned, performed, and recorded by the NSO.

As the orchestra affiliated with the National Performing Arts Center, the NSO presents a 40-week season of approximately 80 events — concerts, chamber recitals, operas, and crossover productions. Performing not only for audiences throughout Taiwan, the NSO also tours regularly overseas, having performed in such musical centers as Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Milan, Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Seoul, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., New York City and many other cities.

About Taiwu Ballads Troupe
Taiwu Ballads Troupe (TBT) was founded by Camake Valaule at Taiwu Elementary School in Pingtung, Taiwan. Beginning in 2004, Camake worked closely with tribal elders to document traditional Paiwan melodies and vocal polyphony. These songs were then carefully taught to TBT’s members. The original members then continued the cycle of transmission by teaching the songs to a new generation. Today, TBT has become one of the most representative groups dedicated to preserving and performing Paiwan music.

Since its founding, TBT has appeared at major international festivals and venues across Asia, North America, Europe, and Australia. In 2019, they were invited to perform on the main stage at WOMADelaide (Australia) and WOMAD New Zealand, becoming the first Taiwanese group invited to perform on the festival’s main stage.

Acknowledgements

LA Performance
Supervised by: Council of Indigenous Peoples, Taiwan; Hakka Affairs Council, Taiwan; Ministry of Culture, Taiwan; Taiwan Academy of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles 
Appointed Airline: STARLUX Airlines
Event sponsored by: I-MEI Culture and Education Foundation
Event Partner: National Cultural Association of Taiwan
Special Thanks: UUIN; JIU ZHEN NAN

Phoenix Performance
Supervised by: Council of Indigenous Peoples, Taiwan; Hakka Affairs Council, Taiwan Sponsored by: TSMC Education & Culture Foundation
Appointed Airline: STARLUX Airlines
Event sponsored by: I-MEI Culture and Education Foundation
Event Partner: National Cultural Association of Taiwan
Special thanks: UUIN; JIU ZHEN NAN

New York Performance
Supervised by: Council of Indigenous Peoples, Taiwan; Hakka Affairs Council, Taiwan; Ministry of Culture, Taiwan; Taipei Cultural Center in New York
Sponsored by: CTBC Bank
Appointed Airline: STARLUX Airlines
Event sponsored by: I-MEI Culture and Education Foundation
Event Partner: National Cultural Association of Taiwan
Special Thanks: UUIN; JIU ZHEN NAN
Designated Hotel: Friendwell Group

Media Contact
Matt Herman
8VA Music Consultancy
matt@8vamusicconsultancy.com

###