Mingdu Li

Mingdu Li is a doctoral composer at the Royal College of Music, generously supported by the RCM Studentship and the prestigious Mendelssohn Scholarship Foundation. She holds an MMus and BMus (Hons) in Composition from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, as well as a BSc (Hons) in Mathematics from University College London.

Her recent compositional focus explores the evocation of the ‘silent’ languages of mathematics and quantum physics into vivid, ‘audible’ sound worlds. Her music often interrogates themes of human insignificance in relation to our Creator, charting a journey from existential uncertainty to contemplating cosmic origins and ultimate destiny. She views this approach as a bridge between scientific inquiry and spiritual introspection, inviting listeners to engage with both the vastness of the universe and the depths of their inner selves.

Her compositions have been performed by leading ensembles and presented at major festivals and programmes, including the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Britten Pears Young Artist Programme, National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain, Hebrides Ensemble, Red Note Ensemble, Mivos Quartet, Resol Quartet, MotoContrario Ensemble, Avanti! Chamber Orchestra, Sound Festival Scotland, London Philharmonic Orchestra Soundworks, and Curtis Summerfest. Her interdisciplinary practice extends to collaborations across stage and media, including contemporary dance, ballet, film scoring, installation arts, and educational projects.

Her orchestral piece Entropy was premiered by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under Martyn Brabbins and broadcast on BBC Radio 3, where she has also been featured multiple times as a composer and interviewee. She is the recipient of the Walter and Dinah Wolfe Memorial Prize and the Silver Medal of the The Worshipful Company of Musicians. She is also a published composer, with work featured in the latest ABRSM examination syllabus.

Her music has been described as having “a compelling ever-present pulse, conveying the sense of inexorability” (The Edinburgh Music Review), and as “a confident work… a sense of an uncontrollable beast of pure energy” (Bachtrack).