Xiaokang Deng is a composer currently based in Fort Worth, Texas. He is currently pursuing his DMA Composition degree at Texas Christian University, studying under Prof. Till Meyn. He recently graduated from the Mannes School of Music with a Master’s degree in Composition, and earned his Bachelor’s degree at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Before studying music, he had an engineering degree and worked as an aerospace engineer for two years.
Xiao is mostly self-taught. He has been exploring various genres and instrumentations including numerous solo, chamber, choral and orchestral pieces over the past few years. He is published by Carl Fischer Music, RWS Music, and TUX People’s Music. His pieces have won him several honors, with his most recent publication “Chinese New Year” being included in the 2025-26 J.W. Pepper Editors’ Choice List. He also loves composing commercial music and is part of the synthpop band X_AN_AX.
Xiao’s greatest inspirations are two Japanese composers – Joe Hisaishi and Ryuichi Sakamoto. Like them, he wants to create beautiful emotional music that deeply touch people’s heart. He would love to go into film scoring in the future, and he looks forward to collaborating with aspiring directors who share his vision of making this world a better world through the power of art.
Contact at xkdengmusic@gmail.com.
