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City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong

PRESS RELEASE

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City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong

Appoints Jean Thorel

CHIEF CONDUCTOR FROM PARIS

Starting 2008/2009 season

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The City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong (CCOHK) is delighted to announce the appointment of Frenchman Jean Thorel to the post of chief conductor starting in the orchestra’s 2008/2009 concert season. Members of the orchestra welcomed the news with excitement. Bryan Carter, Chairman of the CCOHK’s Board of Directors, described Thorel’s appointment as “an exciting new phase for the orchestra.” An announcement was also made in France’s La Lettre Du Musicien which can be viewed by clicking here.

Based in Paris, Jean Thorel is the permanent conductor of the Stringendo Orchestral Ensemble – a post he has held since 1985. Praised by the critics for his intelligent and sensitive approach to orchestral conducting, he is also in demand as a guest conductor throughout Europe and Scandinavia, his versatility enabling him to conduct a wide range of styles from ballet to multi-faceted chamber and orchestral programmes. He has conducted several chamber orchestras on a regular basis including the Danish Chamber Players (Copenhagen), Musica Vitae (Sweden), Musiques Nouvelles (Belgium), the Saint Michel Strings (Finland) and the famed Ensemble Intercontemporain. He has an extensive discography of over twenty CDs.

Jean Thorel first came to conduct the CCOHK in October 2007 in a challenging programme of works by Bach, Frederick the Great and Schnittke. Leanne Nicholls, Founder, Artistic Director and principal oboist of the CCOHK, comments: “Jean Thorel’s twenty-three years’ experience with the chamber orchestra medium was immediately apparent. He knew exactly how he wanted the orchestra to sound and how to achieve it. Working with him was at the level of inspirational.”

The CCOHK, a flexible ensemble of up to thirty professional musicians, is the only chamber orchestra in Asia operating with an annual subscription season. Since its establishment in 1999 the CCOHK has been the major catalyst in diversifying Hong Kong’s local music scene. It fills a niche by specializing in the performance of small-scale works for orchestra.

Over the past eight years the CCOHK has not been able to identify a suitable chief conductor, opting instead to invite guest conductors or to perform without a conductor. Leanne Nicholls, Founder and Artistic Director of the orchestra, explains: “The reason is we have not found anyone “qualified” for such a post. This is the first time we have appointed a chief conductor and the move is a direct response to the unique qualities we see in Jean Thorel. Conducting a chamber orchestra is a totally different phenomenon to conducting a big symphony orchestra. One needs to be detail-orientated with strong musical ideas and experience in conducting a broad range of styles from baroque to modern music. Unfortunately many orchestral conductors are not in touch with the latest interpretations of early music and this makes it difficult for us to perform mixed programmes. This is an important point for the CCOHK since we are the only ensemble in Hong Kong programming this repertoire from time to time.” Leanne Nicholls adds: “Jean Thorel is also an impassioned promoter of new and rare music. A regular conductor at many of the world’s prestigious contemporary music festivals, he has premiered over four hundred works to date. The CCOHK also enjoys a long-term reputation for programming less mainstream works. In this sense we already share many similar artistic goals with Jean Thorel.”

Jean Thorel comments: “I am delighted to become the first chief conductor of the CCOHK and I am prepared to take up this new challenge. Our first concert together in October 2007 was a success due to an excellent collaboration with the CCOHK’s Founder and Artistic Director Leanne Nicholls as well as the chance to work with good and well-focused musicians. For me a chamber orchestra with the flexibility to go up to thirty musicians is a particularly interesting size: every musician is directly concerned and a rich repertoire from baroque to contemporary can be presented to the audience. I am aware it will take time to achieve our maximum potential. I am convinced, however, that we can go much further to build up our own recognizable orchestral sound and, through the experience of sharing both western and eastern repertoire, gradually gain more international recognition for this young ensemble which is already one of the very few chamber orchestras in Asia working on a regular basis.”

On 28 April 2008 from 6-9pm Jean Thorel will hold open auditions at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. For more information please visit www.ccohk.com/auditions-orchestra.htm or call 3420 0107. For media enquiries please contact Maria Lai Tel: 2801 5311. Email: mlai@sagecom.com.hk

Reviews of concerts and recordings conducted by Jean Thorel

«	Jean Thorel is regarded abroad as one of the leading lights among orchestral conductors »
	A Nous Paris (2003)
«	Jean Thorel’s conducting is a model of intelligence and sensitivity »
	Répertoire (2002)
«	An exceptional conductor »
	A Nous Paris (2002)
«	The young French conductor combines poetry and precision with a musical sense that is above reproach »
	Pianistes magazine (2002)
«	Jean Thorel conducted with complete mastery. This was music-making of the highest order by a conductor with a real purpose in mind and who held the attention of his audience from beginning to end »
	JullandsV (2001)
«	Heart, intellect and ears….Jean Thorel not only brought forth really fine orchestral playing but was also the inspiring master of the situation in these unknown works »
	JyllandsPosten (2001)
«	Performed to the highest level of perfection »
	Le Monde de la Musique (2002)

香港城市室樂團
新聞稿


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香港城市室樂團委任首席指揮
來自巴黎的尚•托勞

將於二零零八/二零零九樂季上任
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香 港城市室樂團很高興宣佈，從二零零八/二零零九樂季起，委任法籍指揮尚•托勞為首席指揮。團員對此消息表示歡迎，並感到十分興奮。樂團董事會主席郭博仁說 此項任命「為樂團開展了令人振奮的新階段」。法國雜誌La Lettre Du Musicien亦報導了這則消息，請按此閱讀。

尚• 托勞來自巴黎，自一九八五年以來一直擔任Stringendo管弦樂合奏組的常任指揮。他指揮管弦樂團的手法既聰穎又敏銳，贏得樂評一致讚賞。歐洲及北歐 的樂團都經常邀請他當客席指揮。他多才多藝，能駕馭不同風格的作品，從芭蕾舞劇到各式各樣的室樂及管弦樂曲目均有涉獵。他曾與數個室樂團經常演出。這些樂 團包括Danish Chamber Players(哥本哈根)、Musica Vitae(瑞典)、Musiques Nouvelles(比利時)、Saint Michel Strings(芬蘭)及著名的Ensemble Intercontemporain。他亦灌錄了二十多款唱片。

尚•托勞在二零零七年十月首次來港指揮香港城市室樂團。該場音樂 會的曲目包括巴赫、腓特烈大帝及舒列特克的作品，極富挑戰性。香港城市室樂團創辦人、藝術總監兼雙簧管首席黎燕欣說：「尚•托勞有二十三年指揮室樂團的經 驗，這一點立刻就可看出來。他確切知道自己要樂團奏出怎樣的聲音，亦懂得如何令樂團達到他的要求。與他合作令人得到很大的啓發。」

香港城市室樂團是一隊靈活的合奏組，由專業音樂家組成，演出人數最多可達三十名。該團每個樂季都提供套票訂購計劃，是亞洲唯一以此形式經營的室樂團。自一九九九年創立以來，樂團一直是重要的催化劑，使香港樂壇更趨多元化。樂團專門演奏小型作品，填補本地文化的一道空隙。

過 去八年來，香港城市室樂團一直找不到合適的首席指揮，因此選擇邀請客席指揮或以無指揮的形式演奏。樂團創辦人兼藝術總監黎燕欣解釋道：「樂團這樣做，是因 為我們尚未找到『合資格』的人選。這是我們第一次委任首席指揮。我們發覺尚•托勞有與眾不同的特質，因此作出這一決定。指揮室樂團跟指揮龐大的交響樂團截 然不同：室樂團指揮須注意細節，有卓越的樂思，亦要具豐富的指揮經驗，從巴洛克時代到現代各種風格的樂曲都要能掌握。可惜很多樂團指揮都不熟識演繹早期音 樂的最新手法，這令我們很難舉辦混合型的音樂會。這一點對香港城市室樂團很重要，因我們是香港唯一經常演奏此類曲目的合奏組。」黎燕欣又補充說：「尚•托 勞在推廣新的及較少演出的樂曲方面不遺餘力，經常在全球多個著名的當代音樂節上擔任指揮。至今他已為四百多部新作品舉行首演。香港城市室樂團一向以演出非 主流的作品見稱，在這方面我們與尚•托勞的藝術目標可謂互相脗合。」

尚•托勞說：「我很高興成為香港城市室樂團第一任首席指揮。 我已準備好迎接這項新挑戰。二零零七年十月我與樂團第一次攜手舉行音樂會，其間與樂團創辦人兼藝術總監黎燕欣共事，彼此十分融洽；此外亦有機會與既優秀又 專注的樂師合作，所以我們的音樂會非常成功。我對人數最多能達三十的室樂團特別感興趣：每位樂師都能直接參與，而樂團亦能把自巴洛克時期至現代的豐富曲目 獻給觀眾。我知道若要發揮我們的最大潛能，尚需假以時日；不過我深信我們將能跨進一大步，建立樂團自己別樹一幟的聲音。這個年輕的樂團，現已是亞洲極少數 經常演出的室樂團之一；我期望透過分享東方及西方曲目的經驗，逐漸為這樂團贏取更高的國際聲望。」

尚•托勞將於二零零八年四月二十八日晚上六時至九時在香港演藝學院舉行公開試音。欲知更多詳情，請瀏覽 www.ccohk.com/auditions-orchestra.htm 或致電 3420 0107。傳媒界如有查詢，請聯絡黎詠媛小姐，電話 2801 5311，電郵 mlai@sagecom.com.hk

對尚•托勞的音樂會及錄音之評論

«	在國外，尚•托勞被譽為具領導地位的管弦樂團指揮 »
	A Nous Paris (二零零三年)
«	尚•托勞的指揮手法既聰穎又敏銳，堪稱典範 »
	Répertoire (二零零二年)
«	出類拔萃的指揮 »
	A Nous Paris (二零零二年)
«	這名年輕的法國指揮揉合了詩意和精確度，樂感無懈可擊 »
	Pianistes magazine (二零零二年)
«	尚•托勞完全掌握了指揮的藝術。這是最高層次的合奏，指揮有清晰明確的目標，並從頭到尾都緊抓著觀眾的注意力 »
	JullandsV (二零零一年)
«	心靈、智力、耳朵 …… 尚•托勞除了帶出極佳的管弦樂演奏，更在演繹這批鮮為人知的作品時，注入靈感，控制全局 »
	JyllandsPosten (二零零一年)
«	十全十美的演出 »
	Le Monde de la Musique (二零零二年)