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Dear Friends of the CCOHK,

Happy New Year!

We are pleased to launch the FIFTH issue of CITY RHYTHM.

Contents of This Issue

A. Coming Events
In January 2003, the prodigious violinist Diana Yukawa makes her Hong Kong debut with the CCOHK.

B. Spotlight
Interview with Ms. Chui-tan Lee, first violinist of the CCOHK.

C. Sounding Board
Audience feedback from our December concert with the Swedish Voices Chamber Choir.

D. Artist Scoop
Extra snippets of our guest artists. Artist featured in this issue: Diana Yukawa..

E. Music Amuses
Did you know that Japan's most prominent composer Toru Takemitsu was the ultimate film-buff and saw around 300 films a year?

F. CD Corner
Recommended CDs. Diana Yukawa's debut CD was No. 1 best-seller on the HMV classical charts in Japan. Find out more .....

G. Quiz
Answer the quiz and win FREE concert tickets to our January concert.

Enjoy the newsletter now !

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A. Coming Events

Don't miss our next concert which features the Anglo-Japanese violinist and rising star, Diana Yukawa.

Details

Diana Yukawa : Hong Kong Debut

Date : 29 January 2003 (Wednesday)
Time : 8:00 p.m.
Venue : Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall

Artists

Diana Yukawa ----- Violin
Mido Komai ----- Conductor

Tickets

$ 250 $ 180 $ 150 (with half-price concessions)

Now available at all URBTIX outlets

Tel. No. : 2734 9009

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B. Spotlight

Interview with Ms. Chui-tan Lee, first violinist of the CCOHK.

Where are you from and how long have you been in Hong Kong?
I was born in Hong Kong. When I was nine, I took an extended "detour" to Beijing, New York City and Toronto before returning to Hong Kong in 1996.

What do you enjoy most about playing in the CCOHK?
I enjoy very much the friendly atmosphere as well as the dedication of the players and supporting staff behind the scene.

Which CCOHK guest artist has made the biggest impression on you?
Oh, that's a tough one ..... there are quite a few artists I admire. Michala Petri, Peter Leech and Rainer Honeck are quite high on my list. They all have a special gift of conveying their inner thoughts about music to the public. That ultimately is what every musician strives for and what audience members come to experience.

Which CCOHK concert has been the most memorable for you?
"Baroque by Candlelight" at St. John's Cathedral. I love playing in churches. The silence in a church before the music begins is a moment that inspires me most. Of course the candlelight was very atmospheric too.

You have studied music in Hong Kong, China and the United States. How would you compare your learning experiences in these three places?
The study environments in these places are very different. In my early years I took private lessons and exams in Hong Kong. These helped me develop a good foundation. Then I went to Beijing and stayed there for a year. Whilst I was there I lived among music students in a conservatory. We were surrounded by music all the time. It is a unique experience I will never forget. After my Beijing stopover New York City turned out to be a cultural shock! There was so much of everything! The best musicians, operas, ballets, museums, etc. could be found there. Subsequently I left for Toronto and obtained my bachelor degree from the University of Toronto, where I enjoyed a rewarding university life. I was lucky to have the opportunity to study in all these wonderful places and to learn from some of the best teachers in the world.

You come from a very musical family. Could you tell us something about your musical family background and how this has influenced your career?
My mother is a pianist, and she has always encouraged her children to play chamber music together. Playing trios with my siblings was not only fun: it brought us closer to each other. As we grew older we went our separate ways. I continued my music study in New York City and Toronto, whilst my sister quit piano and went on to get a business degree. She is now a media / entertainment executive. My cellist brother currently has a solo career in Europe. Though we don't play together or see each other very often now, my siblings always give me tremendous encouragement whenever I have to make decisions relating to my music career.

Name one of the most important milestones in your music career.
I don't have a specific moment in my music life that is most important because there are so many! For example, playing for Zoltan Szekeley - the violinist to whom Bartok dedicated his second violin concerto - or finally discovering how to help a student - these are all milestones in my life. I suppose I can say that the most recent milestone is the baroque violin recital I gave at the Chinese University of Hong Kong

Why do you have such a great passion for baroque music?
Many baroque composers were of the view that a musical performance should resemble a speech. For me that idea is very appealing: it gives me freedom to express myself through ornamenting and improvising a simple line of music. I feel that I can give much more of myself when performing on a baroque violin.

What message do you have for our friends?
Come to our concerts and hear us express our "inner thoughts"!

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C. Sounding Board

Friends who attend our concerts and are successful in having their comments published will win 2 FREE tickets to one of our future events.

In this issue we are pleased to share with you the following COMMENTS FROM OUR AUDIENCE MEMBERS who attended our "A Celebration of Light" concert on 5 and 6 December 2002:

Very enjoyable and unusual. The City Chamber Orchestra played to an excellent standard. The music was well chosen with a Christmas theme. The Swedish Voices Chamber Choir were superb.
---------- Mrs. Painter, Tai Po, NT

A truly sensational performance! The CCOHK has indeed brought a magical experience to me.
---------- Miss Li, Kowloon

I thought it was brilliant - an inspired setting, a superb programme, the orchestra at its best, beautiful singing from the Swedish Voices Chamber Choir and dramatic entrances and exits. All that and a great supper after the concert too!.
---------- Dr. Dilena, Shatin, NT

The selection of the music was appropriate for the Christmas festival and for the church setting. I thought the timing was just right, the performers were good and the music was lively. I also enjoyed learning about the Swedish traditions. The refreshments were good as well!
---------- Miss Fung, Central, HK

After spending six years away from Sweden, it is remarkable how close to home music can make you feel.
---------- Mr. Brookes, Mid-Levels, HK

Congratulations to these four friends, who have each won 2 FREE TICKETS to one of our future concerts. We will be in touch with you soon!

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D. Artist Scoop

Seventeen-year old Diana Yukawa is the latest violin sensation to hit the classical music world, with an extraordinary tale to tell. She was born in Tokyo in 1985, just three weeks after the tragic death of her father, Japanese banker Aki Yukawa, who was killed when a Japan Airlines jumbo jet careered into the side of a mountain killing all but 4 of the 520 people on board. She went back to England with her mother and sister when she was two months old and the family now lives in London.

Diana's musical taste is wide, encompassing not only classical but also pop, R & B, jazz and Latin American. She enjoys partying after a concert! She loves fashion and her interests include photography, cooking and art.

Source:

http://www.dianayukawa.com/BIOGRAPHY.HTM

Diana Yukawa is a violinist on the brink of international stardom. In Japan she performs to sold-out concerts. Don't miss this special opportunity to hear her first performance in Hong Kong with the CCOHK. She will be playing works by Saint-Saens (as recorded on her CD with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) and Dvorak.

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E. Music Amuses

Did you know that Takemitsu (1930-1996) was the ultimate film-buff and saw around 300 films a year?

Takemitsu is Japan's best-known composer, and was considered by Aaron Copland to be "one of the outstanding composers of our time". Throughout his career he strove to create bridges between East and West, both musically and philosophically. He was also a prolific film-music composer, and wrote the music for 93 Japanese films. He was closely associated with film-makers of the Japanese new wave, and provided the score for such Japanese classics as Teshigahara's Woman in the Dunes and Kurosawa's Ran. His film music was as important to him as his concert music, chiefly because of his obsession with the cinema. He was the ultimate film-buff, and boasted that he saw around 300 films a year, his tastes embracing Hollywood blockbusters, westerns, art movies and trash. When visiting a strange country, he would often head straight for a cinema as his first port of call, whether or not he und erstood the language.

Takemitsu once said, "I learn a great deal about people through movies ..... even if I can't understand what they are saying and don't know anything about their culture. By watching them in the movies, I can get a sense of their feelings and their inner lives. I come to understand foreign people in ways that are different from talking to them ..... it's a musical way of understanding".

Source:

http://www.soundintermedia.co.uk/treeline-online/biog.html

The guest conductor in CCOHK's January concert, Ms. Mido Komai, knew Takemitsu personally and assisted him in some concerts. She described him as a "deeply spiritual" person.

In our January concert, you will have the opportunity to hear music from three of Takemitsu's most popular film scores, namely Black Rain, Jose Tores and Face of Another. These pieces are so popular with audiences that they are often played as encores in Japan.

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F. CD Corner

Do make your way to the HMV record store. You will find that Diana Yukawa has her own CD box! She has released the following two CDs on the BMG label:

1. La Campanella

---------- BVCC-31040

---------- (recorded when Yukawa was fifteen)

2. Concerto and works by Saint-Saens with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

---------- BVCC-31053

---------- (recorded when Yukawa was sixteen)

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H. Quiz

Answer the quiz and win FREE concert tickets

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Question 1
A special choir came to Hong Kong to perform with the CCOHK in the concert entitled "A Celebration of Light" in December 2002. State the country from which the choir came from and why the choir was so special.

Question 2
In April 2003 the CCOHK will perform with another guest soloist from the United Kingdom. What unique instrument does she play?

(For answers to these questions please check our website: http://www.ccohk.com/ )

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Send your answer by email to maryanne@ccohk.com on or before NOON on 10 January 2003 (Friday) together with your name, telephone number and postal address.

The first two persons to submit the correct answer together with his/her name, telephone number and postal address will win 2 FREE tickets to our "Diana Yukawa: Hong Kong Debut " concert on 29 January 2003 (Wednesday).

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We hope you have enjoyed this newsletter. Do forward this to all your music-loving friends so that they can join in the fun and win free concert tickets too.

The editor of CITY RHYTHM is Mary Anne Pun.

If you have any questions, please e-mail her at maryanne@ccohk.com