Zechariah Goh Toh Chai studied piano under Ong Lip Tat, harmony from Phoon Yew Tien and counterpoint from Leong Yoon Pin while working on his Diploma of Music from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. In 1999, he received the David and Gunda Hiebert Scholarship award to work on his Master of Piano from University of Kansas, during which he was appointed as a graduate assistant by the university to teach undergraduate music theory.
Subsequently, he worked on his Doctorate degree majoring in Composition under the guidance of Dr. Charles Hoag. At the same time, he studied Orchestration and Arrangement for Band under James Barnes. Zechariah was also awarded the prestigious Anthony Cius Prize for outstanding student composer from the University of Kansas for the Academic year of 2001 and 2002.
Before embarking on his studies in the United States, he was a familiar face in the local music scene, teaching bands and choirs in Singapore. He was a lecturer at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, specializing in Composition, Orchestration, Aural and Sight Singing, and Keyboard Harmony since July 2002.
As a composer, he is frequently commissioned to write music for symphonic bands and choirs. Since the 1990s, his choral works have been premiered in Singapore as well as many international festivals and competitions around the world, including Austria, Brazil, Germany, Greece and Wales.
In 2003, Zechariah’s “Piano Trio” and “Variation on Rasa Sayang” were performed at the Ong Teng Cheong Concert held at Esplanade Concert Hall. He was also commissioned by the Co-curricular Activities Branch of the Ministry of Education to compose two pieces for the Singapore Youth Festival choral competition in 2003.
In 2004, the SYC Ensemble Singers premiered Zechariah’s “Narcissus and Echo”, while the Singapore Symphony Orchestra premiered his piano concerto titled “Meta Dragon”. July 2004 saw the world premiere of “Zhu Li Guan” (In the Bamboo Forest), commissioned by the Victoria Chorale for the Choir Olympics 2004 held in Bremen, Germany. His creativity was further explored through the various compositions such as the orchestra piece “Celestial Blossoms” for the fireworks display for the 39th National Day Parade, performed by the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, “Concertino” for saxophone and wind ensemble, performed by The Philharmonic Winds, and “Ripples I” for two pianos and four percussionists. The latter, in particular, was premiered at the prestigious Ong Teng Cheong Concert held at the Esplanade Concert Hall in September 2004.
For his artistic excellence in the field of music, Zechariah was conferred the Young Artist Award (Music) in September 2003 by the National Arts Council, Singapore. The award was presented by the President of the Republic of Singapore at Istana.