Check Out Sampson Chou’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sampson Chou.

Hi Sampson, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised in Taiwan. With my interest in piano after hearing my mother play it, I started getting trained as a classical pianist since I was a kid. To broaden my vision and career possibilities, I came to the U.S. to pursue my bachelor’s degree with my parents’ support. I was one of the teenagers feeling uncertain about what/ who they want to be in the future.

Things changed after watching anime, such as “My Neighbor Totoro” and “Spirited Away.” I got deeply influenced by Miyazaki Hayao and Joe Hisaishi, who incredibly demonstrate how powerful and beautiful the combination of music and animation is, and this is what I want to bring to other people. Thus, to know more about myself, I chose to be majoring in design in high school and gave animation a try in the first year at community college. Afterward, I found out music is still the right medium for expressing my thought on the message I want to tell the world. After studying in community college for two years, I successfully got accepted and transferred to California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), which is my dream college, as a music composition student. I am currently focusing on film scoring while exploring more possibilities in my music.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It is a common idea in the Eastern world that parents usually hope their kids to choose jobs like civic servant, lawyer or doctor that in general have stable salary while art and music can only be classified as habit/ interest. Plus, choosing and sticking to a career relating to art/ music could be a gamble as there is no standard of how art and music should be. In other words, artists and musicians will not know whether they can make the end meet until the day they become successful commercially. Because of these reasons, I almost gave up my dream in music after questioning myself and my works thousands of times. Fortunately, after transferring to CalArts, I got opportunities for collaborating with animators and filmmakers with amazing talent in their works. It saves me from doubting myself as a musician after getting closer to my ideal I am pursuing in life.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I hope my music means a sort of support to the listeners. Because things change and happen rapidly nowadays, people have to deal with so many issues and tend to put so much pressure on themselves. Therefore, I wish the few minutes of my music could soothe the listener’s upset. I enjoy composing music which the listeners can connect to it with their unique life experience. I have composed several pieces that have meaningless syllables instead of lyrics as lyrics sometimes is restricting the listeners’ personal feeling towards the music/ melody. On the other hand, I am recently experimenting with composing music with short lyrics. I am trying to find the balance between indicating the message from me and the listeners’ views towards my music. I also release my original songs on platforms, such as Spotify and YouTube, as “Northernotes” and “Sampz.” Little by little, I am connecting to my audiences’ through my composition.

What were you like growing up?
While I was growing up, I found myself very observing as I care about keeping the balance. I tend to find the crux on different issues, especially interpersonal relations. Unwittingly, I usually become the mediator to communicate and reconcile conflicts in a group to keep a healthy and effective environment. This trait shapes me as an adaptive and sociable person who can blend into a team and communicate well to reach the goal of the project. I am also treasuring all thing in my life. I feel lucky that people, especially my parents who are willing to support me financially, around me are supporting the music dream I am trying to achieve. It is also cherishing that people I met in CalArts are helping each other develop their careers. I am growing up to be a better musician and human being with all the support.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://www.sampz.work/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sampz.c
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeRD0Q1LH6dOoQZCSJi_vOg
• Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3abIJoSIPKrsysOZHwnka5?si=soO7QfE2RH6O8M1nP32Pmg

Image Credits
Portrait: Wennie Cheng