Joan Tan (b.2000) is a Singaporean composer currently based in Cologne, Germany, whose music draws upon lived experiences, both her own and of others. She graduated in 2023 with a Bachelor of Music (Honours) in Composition at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music (YSTCM), under the tutelage of Associate Professor Peter Ivan Edwards and Martin Jaggi, and is currently doing a Masters in Instrumental Composition at the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln, under the tutelage of Brigitta Muntendorf and Oxana Omelchuk.

Coming from a society, and perhaps a world, where much sensory input is tuned-out for the sake of every-day functioning, Joan seeks to create sonic experiences that encourage focused listening, guiding listeners through crafted, auditory experiences that are reflections and responses to ones environments. Attention and perception are at the forefront of her compositions. She is fascinated by how attention constructs and distorts one's perceptions, and shapes one’s entire experience, both in music and in everyday lives.

Memory and the fallibility of memories are also important aspects in her compositions. She believes that every sound triggers a sensory response, engages ones imagination and evokes emotions through associations. Recognisable sound sources form part of her compositions, and are often distorted in her works, leaving behind crafted gestures and faint memories of what they once were. Incessant repetitions of materials are seen as a form of encoding in the audiences’ memories, with the shifting of attention to different sonic aspects hiding and revealing different variation processes that shape the musical journey.

Joan treasures the collaboration and experimentation processes when working with musicians. She has worked with ensembles such as Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, Mivos Quartet, b-l duo, Weird Aftertaste collective, Ensemble Chromoson, Ensemble Musikfabrik, Asasello Quartet. Her works have been presented at RED NOTE New Music Festival (2021), Valencia International Composers Academy (2022), IYCA Ticino (2023), Maerzmusik (2024), Sommerblut KulturFestival (2025), Frequenz_Festival Kiel (2025), Limina Festival (2025), Marginale Transmedia Arts and Electronic Music Festival (2025) and Festspielhaus Hellerau (2026). She was awarded Honourable Mention in the Frost School of Music Ensemble Ibis Composition Competition (2021) and 3rd prize in the Musicworks Electronic Music Composition Contest (2024).

Joan hopes to travel widely one day, to experience life in societies beyond her own.