Marzelan Salleh has lived in Malaysia and UK. His music such as Bani Jawi, Bangkit, Puteri Gunung Ledang, Rukun, Hijrah, and Tarian Cinta have been inspired by Asian nuance and Western European music combined with transcultural contemporary ideas. His music has been performed in United Kingdom and Malaysia alongside composers such as John Pickard, Michael Ellison, and Dieter Mack. Performances of his compositions at major international music festivals and concerts include New Music in the South West, Bristol New Music Festival, Contemporary Music Venture Concert Series and University of Bristol’s New Music Ensemble Concerts. Marzelan Salleh has worked and collaborated with prestigious music ensembles and musicians namely, Quatuor Bozzini, the Brodowski Quartet, New Music Ensemble Bristol, and Manos Charalabopoulos, to name a few. Marzelan Salleh has attended composition workshops and masterclasses by renowned composers and musicians such as Pierre Boulez, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, John Pickard, Trevor Wishart, Philip Glass, and Nigel Clarke.

Marzelan Salleh received his PhD in Composition from the University of Bristol under the supervision of Dr. Michael Ellison, and previously did his Masters in Composition at the University of Salford with Prof. Alan Williams. Marzelan Salleh’s first involvement in music began as a saxophonist in St. John Institution Kuala Lumpur’s marching band. After which he enrolled into Universiti Teknologi MARA Malaysia, where he studied clarinet and obtained a first class degree. Composing music has always been his main interest, which led him to obtain a scholarship to pursue contemporary music composition in the UK.