UPCOMING EVENTS

I am bringing a concert programme to venues across England in 2020, aiming to raise funds for the newly established South Sudan Episcopal University. Click here for more details.


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My newly-curated series of concerts

Running from November 2019 to April 2020


PAST EVENTS

HMDT Music I Can Sing! Music Theatre Programme Final Performance

7 December 2019 (Saturday)
Haggerston School
Weymouth Terrace
London E2 8LS

We will present musical numbers including ‘Fame!’ from Fame! and My Fair Lady


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HMDT Music (Hackney Music Development Trust) is an award-winning non-profit organisation that commissions new compositions and stimulates the musical development of students from 5 to 15.


Evensong at St Matthew’s Westmninster

12 November 2019 (Monday)
17:00-18:00
St Matthews Church
20 Great Peter Street
Westminster
London SW1P 2BU

Evensong programme will feature compositions by Lee Dunleavy, Clifford Woods, and others.


Advent Eucharist with Archbishop John Sentamu

2 December 2019 (Tuesday)
Private event

I will lead the Deansbank Singers in offering music for the Advent Eucharist.


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Deansbank Singers, a choir with 45 years of history in the heart of Westminster. The choir comprises of professional and amateur musicians who are associated with Church House, the Department for Education, and individuals from Central London.


I presented my new research with the paper ‘Debussy’s Sonata for Cello and Piano (1915): Pierrot and the Loss of Power in Music and Theatre in the Public Sphere’

Presentation at the 11th International Biennial Conference on Music Since 1900

9 September 2019 (Sunday)
University of Huddersfield, UK


HMDT Music
I Can Sing! Saturday Music Theatre Programme Summer Term Final Performance

13 July 2019 (Saturday)
Haggerston School
Weymouth Terrace
London E2 8LS

We performed scenes from Richard Taylor’s opera Confucius Says.


Deansbank Singers

12 June 2019 (Wednesday)
St Matthews Church
20 Great Peter Street
Westminster
London SW1P 2BU

I conducted the Deansbank Singers in performing Mozart’s Missa Brevis in D major, Eleanor Daley’s Paradise, and more.


Second Monday Lunchtime Concert 4: Minimalist Meditation

10 June 2019 (Monday) |
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20
Church House Chapel
27 Great Smith Street
Westminster
London SW1P 3AZ

I performed on the piano:

  • Arvo Pärt, Für Alina (1976)


Second Monday Lunchtime Concert 2: Dance as Prayer

15 April 2019 (Monday) |
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20
Church House Chapel
27 Great Smith Street
Westminster
London SW1P 3AZ

I performed on the piano:

  • J. S. Bach - Myra Hess, “Jesus, Joy of Man’s Desiring”

  • J. S. Bach - Saint-Saëns, “Air from Cantata no. 36”

  • Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre, excerpts from Suite in D minor (1707)

  • J. S. Bach - Egon Petri, “Sheep May Safely Graze”


Second Monday Lunchtime Concert 3: A Tune You Know

13 May 2019 (Monday) |
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20
Church House Chapel
27 Great Smith Street
Westminster
London SW1P 3AZ

Singer Marija McKean and I performed cover songs of Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, and more. More details to follow.


HMDT Music
I Can Sing! Saturday Music Theatre Programme Spring Term Final Performance

30 March 2019 (Saturday)
Haggerston School
Weymouth Terrace
London E2 8LS

In my role as as the Music Director of the I Can Sing! Music Theatre, I collaborated with my colleagues and students to present scenes from The Greatest Showman, Pippin, Barnum, Singing in the Rain, and numbers such as “Handful of Keys” (Fats Waller), “Top Hat” (Irving Berlin), and “The Day the Circus Left Town” (Carolyn Leigh/ Harold Spina). I also conduct the parents’ choir, presenting “Londonderry Air/ An Irish Folksong.”


Lent Eucharist with Archbishop Justin Welby (internal event)

14 March 2019 (Thursday)
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU

I led the Deansbank Singers in offering service music for the Lent Eucharist. The celebrant was the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Communion, Justin Welby.


Second Monday Lunchtime Concert 1: Secret Whispers

11 March 2019 (Monday) |
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20
Church House Chapel
27 Great Smith Street
Westminster
London SW1P 3AZ

Baritone Matthew Crowe and I performed

  • Clara Schumann, “Geheimes Flüstern hier und dort” from 6 Lieder, op. 23

  • Gerald Finzi, “Come Away, Death” and “It was a Lover”

  • Madeleine Dring, “Come Away, Death” and “It was a Lover”


HMDT Music
I Can Sing! Saturday Music Theatre Programme Autumn Term Final Performance

8 December 2018 (Saturday)
Haggerston School
Weymouth Terrace
London E2 8LS

HMDT Music (Hackney Music Development Trust) is an award-winning non-profit organisation that commissions new compositions and stimulates the musical development of students from 5 to 15.

In my role as as the Music Director of the I Can Sing! Music Theatre, I collaborated with my colleagues and students to present scenes from Aladdin and Hairspray. I also conduct the parents’ choir, presenting music by the Beatles, Stephen Sondheim, and Nina Simone.


Advent Eucharist with Archbishop Justin Welby (internal event)

3 December 2018 (Monday)
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU

I led the Deansbank Singers in offering service music for the Advent Eucharist. The celebrant was the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Communion, Justin Welby.

The choir sang “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus,” “Of The Father’s Love Begotten,” “Lo! He Comes With Clouds Descending,” and “The Angel Gabriel” (the latter arranged by Malcolm Archer). 


Holy Communion with Bishop Susan M. Brown, Moderator of the Church of Scotland

29 November 2018 (Thursday)
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU

I offered music for the visit of Bishop Susan M. Brown, Moderator of the Church of Scotland, to Lambeth Palace. She was the celebrant of the Holy Communion.

The music included two Scottish tunes, “Stroudwater” and “Ae Fond Kiss.”


Deansbank Singers:
A Concert for Remembrance

13 November 2018 (Tuesday)
Church House
27 Great Smith Street
Westminster
London SW1P 3BN

For my debut performance in London, I am honoured to conduct the Deansbank Singers, a choir with 45 years of history in the heart of Westminster.

The concert celebrated Deansbank's late conductor, Francis Bassett with two works. It opened with "They Shall Not Grow Old," with text from Robert Laurence Binyon’s poem For the Fallen (a nod to the poppies, no less), set to music by Clifford Woods. The programme continued with Gabriel Fauré's Requiem, taking the listener on a journey from intense prayer, human flaws, and the fear of death to paradise and bliss.


Guest Artist performance, presentation, and masterclass for the Piano Palooza of AmateurPianists

April 28, 2018 (Saturday)
Q Lecture Hall, Qualcomm
6455 Lusk Boulevard
San Diego, CA
 

I was thrilled to present a talk "Diversifying your Musical Portfolio." Just like a diverse investment portfolio, a diverse musical portfolio would reap benefit to the performers themselves and the audience. I shared how I do that as a performer and educator. I also shared resources on diversifying your piano repertoire (intermediate and advanced levels).

I also taught a piano masterclass  and presented a short piano recital, with the following program:

Amy Beach, Fireflies, op. 15, no. 4
Teresa Carreño, Prière (Prayer), op. 12
Cécile Chaminade, Pierrette, op. 41
Chinese traditional tune, Spring on Moonlit River
Arnold Schoenberg, "Minuet" from Piano Suite, op. 25
Johannes Brahms, Intermezzo in A, op. 118, no. 2


Tuesdays @ Monk Space

March 20, 2018 (Tuesday) | 8pm
Monk Space, Koreantown,
Los Angeles, CA

Kirsten Ashley Wiest and I performed compositions by Southern California composers and by Ligeti. The concert is reviewed positively and generously by Sequenza21: The Contemporary Classical Music Community!


Performance at Santee

March 25, 2018 (Sunday) | 6.30pm
Santee United Methodist Church,
8964 N. Magnolia Ave,
Santee, CA

I performed Franz Schubert's piano work for four hands Fantasy in F minor with Ania Sundstrom. Other performers in the concert include Daria Binkowski (flute) and Kyle Rowan (clarinet)


Opera Bula Matari: Breaker of Rocks

March 10, 2018 (Saturday) | 7pm
Concert Hall,
Conrad Prebys Music Center,
San Diego, CA

I served as Music Director for the first full-presentation of Josh Charney's opera Bula Matari: Breaker of Rocks. The opera is based on the true story of British explorer Henry Morton Stanley’s tumultuous expedition through the African Congo into the Sudan.


Vocal Recital with Lauren Jones

Feb 15, 2018 (Thursday) | 7pm
Experimental Theater,
Conrad Prebys Music Center,
University of California, San Diego

In our first collaborative performance together, we played Igor Stravinsky's Three Japanese Lyrics, excerpts from his opera The Rake's Progress, and a few other pieces by Erik Satie. Lauren also sang Luciano Berio's Sequenza and played more ensemble pieces with other collaborators. 

 


Soirée for Music Lovers

Feb 14, 2018 (Wednesday) | 7pm
Concert Hall, Conrad Prebys Music Center, San Diego, CA

I played Robert Schumann's Piano Quartet in E-flat major with violinist Paivikki Nykter, violist Annabelle Terbetski, and cellist Cecilia Kim. Other pieces in the program include a Ravel trio and a Telemann sonata. Professor of Voice Philip Larson and I were going to performing Brahms's "Botshaft" and Richard Strauss's "Heimliche Aufforderung." Unfortunately, this part of the program cancelled due to Larson's sickness- we wish him well!


Matinée with Music Lovers

Feb 7, 2018 (Wednesday) | 4pm
Mesa College
San Diego, CA

I performed Robert Schumann's Piano Quartet in E-flat major with violinist Paivikki Nykter, violist Annabelle Terbetski, and cellist Cecilia Kim. Kirsten Ashley Wiest sang Leo Delibes's "Bell Song" with my accompaniment. Other pieces in the program include a Ravel trio and a Telemann sonata.


Recording sessions with Kirsten Ashley Wiest

Jan 20-21, 2018 (Sat/Sun)
University of California, San Diego

We recorded our first album titled "Luminous." We challenge ourselves with a different kind of virtuosity with each piece, whether it's rhythmic complexity, extreme vocal registers, the construction of extreme moods, or the sheer number of notes(!) Here are what you'll find in our final product:
James ErberPhoenix (2016), Jeffery HolmesFragments (2010), Jack Van ZandtApples and Time Crack in October (2015), and Ligeti, Mysteries of the Macabre (1991)


Contemporary Music recital with Kirsten Ashley Wiest

Jan 18 (Thursday) | 3pm
Recital Hall, Conrad Prebys
Music Center, San Diego, CA

We performed all the pieces we recorded in the Jan 20-21 recording sessions!

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Happy composers, poet, and performers after the concert!
From left to right:
James Erber (who flew all the way from London); me; Kirsten Ashley Wiest; Jeffrey Holmes; Jack Van Zandt; Jill Freeman


Family, Kids, and Infant-Friendly Recital 2

Jan 13, 2018 (Saturday) | 3pm
Recital Hall, Conrad Prebys Music Center

Following a successful kids' concert last year (April 2017), we did more of this! I played Cecile Chaminade's piano character piece "Pierrette," followed by the Figmentum Ensemble's toy piano pieces by Ania Sundstrom, Kyle Rowan and Olivia Kieffer. Soprano Lauren Jones sang "A Green Dog" and "I Feel Pretty" from West Side Story with me in the accompaniment . We encourage kids to talk during performance, and infants can cry as part of musicking. Bottomless crayons and colored papers are provided.


Choral directing at the Christmas Eve Family and Evening Services

Dec 24, 2017 (Sunday)
5pm - family service
8pm - evening service
St.-Mary's-In-The-Valley Episcopal Church, Ramona, CA

I will be directing the St.-Mary's vocal ensemble in performing Mark Weston's Who's The Tiny Baby and other piece in celebration of Christmas. In the period of Advent, we will be singing Patrick Liebergen's Advent Prayers. Rehearsals are on Wednesdays at 7pm at the church sanctuary. Please e-mail me if you're interested in participating!


Presentation at the American Musicological Society Chapter Meeting

September 30, 2017
Occidental College
Los Angeles, CA

I read the paper "The Music and Politics of Pierrot, 1885-1898: Challenges and National and Gender Identities in France" at this meeting. I also demonstrated musical examples from this paper - since there is no extant commercial recording - on the piano. 


Concerto performance
with the Raimondi College Orchestra

July 3, 2017  |  7.30 pm
Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall,
Hong Kong

Nine years ago, I collaborated with the Raimondi College Orchestra in playing Mozart's Piano Concerto in A Major, K. 414. This time, for my alma mater's 60th Anniversary, I will be performing the first movement of Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor. The concert will also feature other music ensembles and choirs of Raimondi College.


Piano Masterclass at Raimondi College

March 30, 2017 | 12.30pm
Karl Hall, Raimondi College
2 Robinson Road
Hong Kong

In my brief visit to Hong Kong earlier, I interacted with Raimondi students who played piano for me.

Image credit: Raimondi College Videography and Photography Club


Presentation at the Composition area Colloquium

May 31, 2017 | 5pm
Room 231, Conrad Prebys Music Center,
University of California, San Diego

Title of talk: “Political Correctness or Ethical Limits of Creativity? Four Vignettes in Composition Related to Asian and Chinese Cultures”

Theme of colloquium: “Influence, Quotation, Appropriation, and Originality”


Bula Matari (Breaker of Rocks), a chamber opera by Joshua Charney

May 22, 2017 | 7pm
Conrad Prebys Music Center
Experimental Theater
San Diego, California

I served as pianist for the premiere of three selected scenes of this opera. 

From Charney: "it’s based on the true historical story of British explorer Henry Stanley and his final expedition through the African Congo into Sudan to rescue a Egyptian appointed governor from Sudanese Islamic freedom fighters. Part of the story may have been the inspiration for Jospeh Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. My musical inspirations are grounded in the early 20th century operas of composers like Strauss and Stravinsky, as well as my own experience with jazz, and my research concerning Iranian ritual opera called Ta’ziyeh."


Family, Kids, and Infant-Friendly Piano Recital

April 29, 2017 | 4pm
Conrad Prebys Music Center
Recital Hall
San Diego, California

Kid-friendly = they can talk during performance! 
Infant-friendly= they can cry during performance!

The program featured Fireflies by Amy Beach, Piano Sonata No. 28, Op. 101 by Ludwig van Beethoven, and
Ballade No. 1 by Frederic Chopin

Free crayons on stage.

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The babies didn't cry!

The kids were cool as well!


King Yue Li (Filbert) mini-tour @ SoCal

April 25, 2017 | 7pm
Conrad Prebys Music Center
Recital Hall
San Diego, California

April 26, 2017 | 7pm
MiMoDa Studio
Los Angeles, California

I managed and booked King Yue Li's SoCal tour - my first time as a manager!

Winner of the Japan-Hong Kong International Music Competition and the Hong Kong-Asia Piano Open Competition, King Yue Li traveled across the United States, Germany, and Hong Kong to perform in solo piano recitals, chamber ensemble concert, and harpsichord salons. Born in Hong Kong, King Yue is a holder of the Masters degree in piano performance at Temple University. 


Recital with Kirsten Wiest (coloratura soprano)

April 8, 2017  |  7pm
Conrad Prebys Music Center
Concert Hall, San Diego, California

In this concert, we played music by John Zorn, James Erber (London), and Bill Alves. Recordings can be found here.

A "new music natural," Kirsten has traveled to numerous venues in France, Texas, and California for concert and operatic performances. She is also the winner of the Young Musicians Foundation Concerto Competition in 2015, when we collaborated in playing Ligeti's Mysteries of the Macabre. (See also her orchestral performance here.)

The Finnish goddess singing John Zorn's jumalattaret


Presentation at the International Musicological Society Congress (Tokyo)

March 22, 2017
Hall 1, Tokyo University of the Arts
Ueno, Tokyo, Japan 

The most recognized learned society in musicology around the globe, the IMS holds its quadrennial congress (the 20th this year) in Tokyo. I'll be presenting the academic paper "Unpolitical Music as Response to Political Apathy in Hong Kong."


Course instructor appointments

July to December, 2016

I taught "Western Classical Music Appreciation" (180-student, big lecture-hall style class), "Music and the Theatrical Mask" (upper-level undergraduate seminar), and "Popular Music: Hong Kong Identities and Politics" (lower-level undergraduate lecture) at the University of California, San Diego.

Music I taught in the Appreciation course include Beethoven's Piano Concerto no. 4 (second movement, "Orpheus in the Hades"), Undine Smith Moore's oratorio Scenes from the Life of a Martyr, and Lei Liang's piano concerto Tremors of a Memory Chord.

Course syllabi are available upon request.


More Notable Events
 

Curator and CoordinatorIntercultural Music Conference and Concerts, UC San Diego, February 26-28, 2016.
Special Discussion Section Leader and Teaching Assistant, for Undergraduates with Basic Needs in English Writing (majority minorities and international students) Revelle College "Humanities" Writing Program, UC San Diego, January - June 2016.
Disabling Schubert's Erl-King, Collaboration with ASL (American Sign Language) performer and percussionist , Dec 1, 2016.