It is difficult to find a corner of Lang Music Building that Kielor Tung ’25 has not inhabited at some point over the past four years. “He contains multitudes,” remarks Ava Pressman ’25, fellow Music student and Tung’s study carrel neighbor in Underhill Music and Dance Library. A conductor, violinist, violist, cellist, vocalist, and music theory grading enthusiast, Tung has made his mark on five ensembles, four chamber groups, and many more projects along the way. 

Tung’s Swarthmore story begins long before he stepped foot on campus as a first-year student. His first music teacher was his mother, Deborah How ’89, Swarthmore’s first Honors Music major. Both his parents, as well as his brother, played piano. Growing up in such a musical family, Tung’s love for music developed naturally from a young age. Nonetheless, Tung forged his own path; “I didn’t want to just play piano,” he recalls. “I wanted to play the violin really badly — I thought it was really cool and impressive what a violin could do.” His parents, though initially hesitant, eventually gave in. From then on, he embarked on a difficult but rewarding journey of mastering the violin, picking up the viola along the way. “There were times when I wanted to quit, but I stuck with it and found an appreciation for not only enjoying classical music as a listener, but also as a player.”

This love for music strongly influenced Tung’s college decision. Throughout high school, he enjoyed learning about the applications of math and science, leading him to want to become an engineer. Nevertheless, he underscores, “I knew I really liked music and didn’t want to give it up.” Realizing that at Swarthmore, he could major in Music and Engineering simultaneously and graduate within four years, Tung intended to “become an engineer and get a music degree on the side.”

However, this plan changed completely upon meeting Senior Lecturer and Orchestra Director Andrew Hauze ’04 and taking his Conducting and Orchestration course as a first-year. “Andrew is super inspiring,” Tung emphasizes. “He can teach pretty much anyone, no matter what level you’re at. It was because of him that I realized that I really liked conducting and wanted to become a conductor.” Though Tung continued on his dual path of double majoring in Music and Engineering, he redirected his focus towards his newfound aspiration to become a conductor.

When reflecting on his journey as a conducting student, Tung is quick to note that the opportunities he has been fortunate enough to access have been incredibly special and unique to Swarthmore. Lab Orchestra, a student chamber orchestra led by advanced conducting students and coached by Hauze, allows Tung to practice and hone his technique in a live setting. “Getting to lead an orchestra weekly is a luxury… I am very privileged to be able to work with an orchestra on a regular basis, something that most undergraduates do not get to do.” One of the biggest highlights of Tung’s Swarthmore musical journey involved conducting Lab Orchestra in a semi-staged production of the Act II finale from Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro in the fall of his junior year. “Figaro is probably my favorite opera of all time, and this just so happened to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of when I conducted the overture at the age of 11. It was a very special moment for me.”

Tung’s conducting journey has not been confined to the walls of Lang Music Building. With the support of Hauze and funding from Swarthmore, Tung has spent the past two summers at The Conducting Institute in Fort Worth, Texas to study with Miguel Harth-Bedoya, one of the leading conductors of the 21st Century. “It was a huge opportunity to be able to work with someone of his caliber, and to be able to study conducting virtually non-stop for three weeks,” he shares. The Conducting Institute provided the space for a special gathering of Swarthmore conductors, as Tung was able to meet Andrew J. Kim ’18, music director of the New York Youth Symphony, and Shira Samuels-Shragg ’20, assistant conductor of the Dallas Symphony: “We all caught up and talked about conducting futures and our shared love for Andrew Hauze. It was so cool.”

Beyond conducting, Tung has been an active member of the Swarthmore Orchestra since his first semester. He is particularly appreciative of the value of collaboration: “Working with others is such an important experience to me. I probably end up learning way more [working with others] than I do in private lessons.”

Through participation in the Fetter Chamber Music Program, Tung has further developed his collaborative musicianship. “I’ve been doing chamber music pretty much every single semester here, and it’s probably been one of the best experiences of my life,” he affirms. Having explored a range of groups, including duets and piano quintets, he is currently playing viola in a string quartet, with an upcoming performance of Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8 in C Minor.

During the pandemic, Tung ventured into new territory, teaching himself cello and singing. This exploration motivated him to take voice lessons under the Music 48 (Individual Music Instruction) program. To support his learning, Tung joined Garnet Singers in the spring of his junior year, noting that “it was the first time I’d ever been in a choral ensemble.” Tung particularly enjoyed performing Nach dir, Herr (BWV 150), a cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach: “I personally love Bach very much, and to be able to sing a full cantata as a group is a feat that I am very proud of.”

Within a semester, Tung was invited to be a Bass Section Leader for both Chorus and Garnet Singers. “Stepping into this new role has been a very interesting experience,” Tung acknowledges. “It was definitely very new to me since compared to a lot of people, I don’t have that much chorus experience, but I am nothing but grateful and honored.” Alongside his fellow section leaders, Tung will perform in an octet at the Chorus and Garnet Singers concert this November. He is particularly looking forward to this experience as “this is the first time something like this has been done at Swarthmore.”

When not collaborating with fellow musicians, Tung might be found collaborating with engineers. Regardless, music does not leave his mind; recently, he has been exploring the intersections between music and engineering through a Directed Reading of Music Acoustics with Professor Carr Everbach. “It’s basically looking at the science and math of music production,” Tung describes. “It explains how music works, which is something that I’m really interested in.” For his Senior Design Project, Tung plans to work on a lightweight and portable soundproof wall, which he may test out in Lang Music Building’s practice drum room.

This final project is only one of many ways in which Tung will wrap up his time at Swarthmore. Later this fall semester, Tung will be conducting the Wind Ensemble in their performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with Hauze as soloist.

Just a few weeks afterwards, Tung will then lead the Orchestra in performing the world premiere of The Green Path Ahead by Omar Camps-Kamrin ’20. “It’s very exciting and a little nerve-wracking to premiere someone else’s work, especially when the composer is still living and the work is so new. But it’s also very rewarding to get to bring someone’s ideas and creation to life, especially a Swarthmore alum’s,” he reflects.

Next semester, Tung’s senior recital will serve as a culmination of the varied skills he has cultivated over the past four years, tying together his accomplishments as a conductor, violinist, and vocalist. This showcase of everything that Tung has learnt at Swarthmore will be free and open to the public on Sunday, May 4, 2025, at 7:30 p.m. in the Lang Music Concert Hall.

Post graduation, Tung hopes to pursue graduate programs in orchestral conducting. Currently in the midst of graduate school applications and auditions, he admits, “I don’t know what the future holds for me.” Despite this uncertainty, Tung expresses gratitude for the past four years and hope for the future. “The students and faculty here have been so helpful and inspiring. From the Class of 2022 to the Class of 2028, everyone has been such an inspiration in my life, and I don’t think I would have appreciated music for what it is if it weren’t for everyone.”

With such a supportive community behind him and a vast range of formative experiences under his belt, Tung poses an excellent question: “Who knows what will happen next?”

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Favorite music course at Swarthmore: Conducting and Orchestration with Professor Andrew Hauze ’04

Favorite music-making experience at Swarthmore: conducting the semi-staged Act II finale from Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro

What you’ll miss most about Swarthmore: the people with whom I’ve made music with, all my friends, and my professors.

What sound or noise do you love? Laughter

What sound or noise do you hate? Nails on a chalkboard

What’s the last song/piece you played on your phone? Appalachian Spring by Aaron Copland