Born in China in 1967, Chengbi An began studying piano at a very young age, and went on to study composition at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music under LiqingYang.

In 1986, he was accepted with honors into the Shanghai Conservatory’s composition program, studying composition and composition theory under Xiaosheng Zhao, and graduating in 1991. During his time there, he was twice awarded the Shen Xigong Music Prize, the Conservatory’s highest honor. Upon completing his studies, he joined the faculty of the Shanghai Conservatory, first as a teaching assistant and then as a lecturer in the Department of Composition (1991-1994). In 1994, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris with Alain Bancquart and Gérard Grisey, where he graduated with highest honors (premier prix) in composition and electronic music in 1998. In 2002, he was appointed Professor and Art Director of the Electroacoustic Music Center at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

In 1991, China National Radio and the Shanghai People’s Radio Station broadcast a one-hour program on his work. His composition Nong.Mou (Dense Fog) for six musicians was included in a Radio France program celebrating the Korean composer Isang Yun on 12 October 1996.