ME6 Philip Tng Liat Peng

ME6 Tng's musical education began with piano lessons at the age of ten. Since then, he has achieved various musical milestones to become the Senior Director of Music of the SAF Band.

As a saxophonist with the SAF Music and Drama Company, ME6 Tng was awarded a scholarship in 1991 to the Royal Military School of Music (Kneller Hall, United Kingdom). He graduated in 1993 from the Bandmaster Course with several accolades including the first prize in the Fanfare Award of the Fred Mortimer Memorial Competition, the second prize in the Besson Cup and Medal, the Sommerville Prize as well as the Graham Wallace Award for being the best overseas student bandmaster.

He rose through the ranks to become the Director of Music of the SAF Central Band in 1995, before assuming the post of Senior Director of Music of the SAF Band in August 2000.

In 2008, ME6 Tng received another scholarship from the SAF to pursue his Masters in Wind Band Conducting at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During his studies, he had the privilege to study conducting with renowned conductors such as James Keene; Abel Ramirez; Roby George; Robert W. Rumbelow; Tim Foley; Stephen Peterson and Russel Mikkelson. Graduating with excellent academic achievements, he was initiated into the Phi Kappa Phi Chapter at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

ME6 Tng is active in many musical activities in Singapore, including conducting the Combined Band at the National Day Parade as well as adjudicating local music competitions and festivals, such as the Singapore Youth Festival and the Singapore International Band Festival. In 2005, both the SAF Central Band and his community band, West Winds, were selected to perform at the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles Conference held in Singapore.

ME6 Tng has also been invited as a guest conductor and adjudicator in several territories including Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Netherlands, and the United States. In addition to his duties in the SAF, he serves as a President of the Wind Bands Association of Singapore.

Apart from his musical studies, ME6 Tng was the first Director of Music to attend the Command and Staff (Executive) Course at the Goh Keng Swee Command and Staff College in 2013, where he was awarded the Book Prize for coming in top of his graduating cohort in Security Studies.