Orchestrating Greater Impact
A new fellowship established by Mr Ngiam Tong Yuen and Mrs Jean Ngiam will support more music-based interventions for health and well-being at the Centre for Music and Health.
YST Orchestral Institute and The TENG Ensemble performing at the Healing Arts Singapore Opening Concert co-organised by the Centre for Music and Health at YST, NAFA-UAS and Jameel Arts and Health Lab in collaboration with the World Health Organization.
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A lifelong lover of music and the arts, Mrs Jean Ngiam is familiar with the power of music to lift one’s spirits and soothe the soul. Having played the piano since young, Mrs Ngiam attended the Sydney Conservatorium of Music High School before graduating from the University of Sydney, where she studied music.
However, Mrs Ngiam had never considered how her passion might have the ability to orchestrate greater purpose. It was only after a painful personal loss in the family that Mrs Ngiam and her husband, Mr Ngiam Tong Yuen, started seeking out ways to help people overcome emotional challenges.
Through a timely discussion with an alumna of the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music (YST), the Ngiams learnt about YST’s Centre for Music and Health (CMH), Southeast Asia’s first dedicated research centre to spearhead evidence-based practices that leverage music for health and well-being.
They had already previously made gifts to support scholarships at NUS, but CMH’s unique mission struck a chord for the Ngiams. “When we found out about the work being done at YST, we wanted to look further and find out how music could help people suffering from emotional issues,” Mr Ngiam said.
Discussions with CMH and YST soon led to the establishment of a fellowship at CMH. This contribution will bring greater emotional health to the community, while also honouring Mrs Ngiam’s longstanding passion for music.
The fellowship will support research efforts at CMH as it continues to develop music-based interventions to improve lives.
Harmonising Music and Wellness
In September 2025, Dr Gladys Heng was appointed the inaugural Jean Ngiam Research Fellow. Having previously served as Research Fellow at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and as Visiting Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics in Frankfurt, Germany, Dr Heng now brings her rich breadth of experience to CMH.
"Through this appointment, I aspire to translate scientific insights into real-world applications that leverage the benefits of music to support health and well-being,” said Dr Heng.
Her research focuses on using a combination of behavioural and neuroimaging techniques to explore how engaging with music can evoke emotions, support memory and promote well-being in healthy ageing.
Assistant Professor Dr Kat Agres (left), Founder and Director of CMH, and Dr Gladys Heng (right), the inaugural Jean Ngiam Research Fellow at CMH.
The generosity of Mr and Mrs Ngiam has come at an optimal time, as the need to find solutions for youth mental health challenges is becoming increasingly urgent.
“We are immensely grateful for Mr and Mrs Ngiam’s gift, which enables the Centre for Music and Health to advance research on the neuropsychology of emotion regulation through music and develop evidence-based music interventions that support mental health and promote well-being in participants from young to old,” said Assistant Professor Dr Kat Agres, Founder and Director of CMH.
The Ngiams’ visionary gift shows the perfect harmony that music and healthcare can create together.
If like Mrs Ngiam, you’re passionate about music and the change it can bring, make a gift to support music talents at YST.
