Sim Boon Yew is a well-known Chinese orchestra music practitioner. He shows his love towards the Chinese orchestral music by actively participating and promoting it in community culture events. In 2001, he was conferred the Public Service Award (PBM) by His Excellency, the President of Singapore. Sim is a ZhongHu player and former resident music arranger of Singapore Chinese Orchestra.
He represented Singapore with various local Chinese Orchestras to perform in places such as Switzerland, America, Japan, Malaysia, Australia and Hong Kong since 1970s. He has been the conductor of Keat Hong Chinese Orchestra (KHCO) since 1981. He had led the orchestra to perform in China, Thailand, Malaysia, Australia and Hong Kong and was popularly received. Under the baton of Sim, the plucking string ensemble of KHCO had won both the first prize in the Ensemble category and Best Performing Award in the National Chinese Music Competition for four consecutive years since 1987.
In 1989, Sim pursued his further studies in conducting and orchestral music arranging and composing at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of Professor Xia Fei Yun and Professor Hu Deng Tiao. He continued his studies in conducting from Professor Li Hua De after his return from Shanghai.
Over the past, Sim has composed/arranged almost 150 music pieces for the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, schools and amateur Chinese orchestras local and abroad. Major pieces include “Magnificent Sheares Bridge”, “Suriram”, “Qing Ming Prayers”, “Melodies Singapura”, “Melodic Potpourri” and “Variations of Burong Kakak Tua”. Other major pieces include several successful adaptations of western orchestral music.
Sim has been actively putting in great efforts in making music with local ethnic colours which has a far-reaching influence to the local Chinese music scene.