Composer Samuel Ting Chu-San was in the news this week in 1965 in an item about an upcoming performance of the Heralds' Choral Society that he founded in 1961.

The society performed in places such as Penang and Kuala Lumpur too and had a total membership of over 150 singers at one point.

Born in China, Mr Ting studied piano and vocal music at Fukien Christian University before he arrived in Singapore in the 1950s.

He taught at Chung Cheng High School and was awarded a postgraduate scholarship to study choral conducting and voice training at the University of Southern California. He was also a soloist in the university's chapel choir.

Mr Ting was an active promoter of local compositions and concerts. He also composed and arranged many church choral music and Chinese art songs.

In 1970, he was awarded the Public Service Star for his outstanding contribution to local culture.

Mr Ting, who moved to Sydney in 1981, released a compilation of works in 1993 in Singapore when he was 68. He died in 2007.