The Academy originated from the Department of Music established in 2005. In 2010, Fujian Conservatory of Music, founded by patriotic overseas Chinese Mr. Tsai Chi-Kun, was incorporated into Minjiang University, and the Academy of Music was officially founded. To commemorate Mr. Tsai Chi-Kun’s outstanding contributions to music education, the Academy was named after him, officially titled Tsai Chi-Kun Academy of Music, Minjiang University.
Centering on applied talent cultivation and oriented to the talent demands of music education and artistic industry development, the Academy strives to cultivate high-level applied talents with solid foundations, strong capabilities, practical competence and distinctive features. It offers two undergraduate majors: Musicology and Performing Arts.
Musicology is a Provincial Characteristic Major, consisting of four orientations: Music Theory, Music Performance, Art Music Management, and Music Technology. The Performing Arts major cultivates applied talents for drama, film and television industries through university-enterprise cooperation and industry-education integration. The Musicology major was approved as a Provincial Demonstrative Applied Major under the background of industry-education integration in Minjiang University in 2024.
Vocal Music is a Provincial Excellent Course; Piano Accompaniment and History of Chinese Music & Appreciation of Masterpieces are Provincial First-class Undergraduate Courses; Song Analysis & Composition and Piano Accompaniment are university-level pilot courses empowered by digital intelligent technology.
The Academy implements a teaching model of promoting learning through competitions and performances. Students have achieved outstanding results in various artistic competitions at home and abroad. The original campus drama Youth Starting Line has won seven major awards including the China Drama Award – Campus Drama Award, the highest national award for campus drama. The large-scale original opera Luanfeng Bridge, co-created and rehearsed by faculty and students, was invited to perform in Beijing, commended by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and awarded the First Prize of the 10th Fujian Baihua Literature and Art Award.
Wu Yaotao, a student of Grade 2022, won the third place in the national finals of the online variety show Stage 2023 hosted by Tencent Video. The vocal group won the Top 8 in the first National Campus Voice of University Students Competition and the national third prize in the second session. Students have repeatedly won first, second and third prizes in Group B (Professional Group) of Performance Category at Fujian Provincial University Students Art Exhibition. Various themed flash mob performances created and staged by the Academy have been broadcast on CCTV many times.
The Academy currently has 38 faculty and staff members, including 28 full-time teachers. Among them, 11 hold senior professional titles, accounting for 39%; all teachers hold master’s degrees or above (13 doctoral degrees); double-qualified and double-competent teachers account for 54%.
One faculty member is selected into Fujian Provincial Outstanding Young Scientific Research Talent Training Program; one into Fuzhou Municipal Young Artist Training Program; one into university-level Mindu Scholar Excellent Talent Program; one into university-level Young Talent Excellent Cultivation Program.
The Academy encourages faculty development as dual-platform talents (teaching platform & performing stage). Faculty members have won numerous professional awards at national, provincial and municipal levels, including:
the 5th place in the final of the 9th Yuri Bashmet International Viola Competition sponsored by the Ministry of Culture of Russia; the semi-final finalist award in Vocal Music (Ethnic) Competition of China Golden Bell Award for Music; the First Prize in National Vocal Music Competition for University Music Teachers; the Second Prize in National Piano Teachers Competition for University Music Education Majors; the finalist award in Youth Group (Bel canto) of the 1st National Vocal Music Exhibition of China Golden Bell Junior Music Award 2024, etc.
Faculty members have won the Silver Award in Bel canto Group of Fujian Selection Competition for China Golden Bell Award for Music, the Gold Award in Vocal Music Competition of Fujian Music and Dance Festival, and first prizes in Bel canto, Ethnic and Pop Groups respectively at Fujian Young Singers TV Competition. Works co-created by faculty have won Fujian Baihua Literature and Art Award and Fuzhou Jasmine Literature and Art Award. Faculty works were selected into the 9th University Integrity Education Collection Upholding Integrity through Vision by the Ministry of Education, and won the Best Online Documentary Award at the 7th Cross-Strait Youth Online Audio-Visual Excellent Works Exhibition.
Monographs compiled by faculty won the Third Prize of the 9th Excellent Scientific Research Achievement Award for Higher Education of the Ministry of Education. Faculty obtained the First Prize of Excellent Scientific Research Achievement for Sub-projects of the National Education Science Eleventh Five-Year Plan Project, second and third prizes in National University Art Education Scientific Research Paper Competition, the Third Prize of Fujian Provincial Excellent Social Science Achievement Award, as well as first, second and third prizes in Provincial Education Scientific Research Paper Competition.
The Academy has obtained approval for 2 Humanities and Social Sciences Projects of the Ministry of Education and 5 Industry-University Collaborative Education Projects of the Ministry of Education. It has published more than ten monographs with Category A publishers and two records with People’s Music Publishing House.
Adhering to integrating teaching with local economic and social development needs, faculty and students have long been invited to undertake and perform important artistic shows at provincial, municipal and community levels, as well as provincial cultural benefit projects, making important contributions to local cultural construction.
The Academy actively carries out the Aesthetic Education Rural Infiltration Initiative, providing cultural services through rural music festivals, Warm Breeze Teaching Assistance and other activities to boost rural revitalization. In 2021, one team was rated as an Excellent Team in the National University Students Social Practice Thousand Schools and Thousand Projects Campaign.
The Academy boasts sound running conditions and complete hardware facilities, including a concert hall, computer music laboratory, professional recording studio, dance studio, piano rooms and rehearsal halls. It has built Fujian Provincial Choral Conducting Talent Incubation Base, Fujian Provincial Pop Music Talent Incubation Base, and Pop Music Research Center (Fujian University Humanities and Social Sciences Base). In 2022, it was designated as Fuzhou Municipal Intangible Cultural Heritage (Yiwu Dance) Inheritance Demonstration Base.
The Academy sets up three scholarship and grant programs: Tsai Chi-Kun Music Fund, Shaole Scholarship and Hailun Piano Scholarship. In 2024, it signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with Gnesins Russian Academy of Music and Moscow State Academy of Music Education.
The Academy actively explores the Art + Ideological and Political Education model, and continuously cultivates educational brands including Ideological and Political Courses in the Concert Hall, Mini Ideological and Political Music Courses and Red Songs in Dormitories.
It has one provincial Model Party Branch. The ideological and political education team won the Third Prize in the 2021 National Excellent Case Collection of University Ideological and Political Work and the Second Prize in Fujian Provincial Excellent Cases of Aesthetic Education Reform and Innovation.
Faculty members have been honored with titles including Fujian Provincial Excellent Communist Party Member, Fujian Provincial Excellent Party Affairs Worker in Universities, Fujian Provincial Advanced Ideological and Political Worker, University Top Ten Counselors, University Top Ten Head Teachers, Favorite Teachers in Students’ Eyes, Fashu Teaching Award and Morality Model Star.
Students won the First Prize in Fujian Provincial Final of Youth Lecturing the 20th National Congress of the CPC. Many students won first and second prizes in Recitation China Classic Recitation Competition of Fujian Provincial Chinese Classics Recitation, Writing and Lecturing Competition. One student Party member was elected member of the 15th Fujian Provincial Committee of the Communist Youth League; one student Party member serves as a lecturer of Fujian Provincial Party Committee Lecture Group Fu Xiaoxuan Propaganda Team.
