1 Mr Anthony Adkins Anthony Adkins was born in Northampton, England, and educated in London

58 Pages·2017·1.34 MB·English

Prof Luc Anthonis

Luc Anthonis is a musician and conductor of Belgium.

At the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory of Antwerp he
received qualifications for solfeggio, flute, chamber
music, harmony and choral conducting.

In 1980, Luc took over the youth choir "Cantilene" and in
1989 he himself founded the Vocal Ensemble Cantando. The latter has won
a great number of prizes in international competitions.

He conducts the Flemish Radio Choir on a regular basis and gave choral
conducting master classes in Bludenz and Vienna (Austria), Szczecin (Poland)
and Burgusio (Italy).

In September 2007, Luc became a professor of choral conducting at the
Conservatory in Antwerp (Belgium). He is also choir the consultant at the
Koor and Stem Choral Federation of Flanders (Belgium) to work with
children's choirs.

Since 1982, Luc has taught flute, choral singing and instrumental ensemble at
the Ekeren Music Academy (Antwerp, Belgium).

He was a soloist at the opera house of Antwerp when he was 11 and has sung
his entire life in choirs. He is now head of the vocal department of The
Royal Conservatoire Antwerp.
Ms Melanie Armitstead

Melanie Armitstead has enjoyed an international career as
a soloist in both Opera and Concert. Early in her solo
career she sang under the baton of Sir Yehudi Menuhin,
Sir Charles Groves and Andrew Parrott in Kent Opera
and Scottish Opera-Go-Round. She was a soloist for
English National Opera (ENO), Opera North, Scottish
Opera and Opera Northern Ireland singing Tatiana in Eugene Onegin, Micaela
and Frasquita in Carmen, 1st Lady in The Magic Flute, Venus in The Return of
Ulyses, Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte, Maria in West Side Story, YumYum in The
Mikado. Melanie understudied the roles of Hero in Beatrice and Benedict,
Cleopatra in Jiulio Cesare and Atalanta in Xerxes for ENO and the Paris
Opera, returning to sing Mitridate and Le Chevalier Imaginaire at The
Chatelet. She performed oratorios and concerts with many of the leading UK
orchestras and continues to enjoy recitals and concert performances.

Melanie sang in a number of established ensembles including The Menagerie
with Nicholas Daniel and Julius Drake and Classic Cocktail which mixed
Classical and Jazz repertoire. Her degrees from Durham in Russian and
French led her to specialise in French and Russian Song Recitals.

Teaching and adjudicating at competitive festivals and competitions is a major
element in Melanie's career. She was the senior singing teacher at Sherborne
Girls for 21 years and has a number of private advanced students. She
adjudicates at competitive festivals around the UK and in Hong Kong, and is a
panelist in larger competitions notably at the Birmingham Conservatoire.
Miss Rebecca Austen-Brown

Rebecca is delighted to be back in Hong Kong this year.
She studied in London, UK, in the Royal Academy of
Music and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama,
specialising in recorders and early fiddles.

As a performer, Rebecca has recorded and toured with
many ensembles; most recently The Sixteen, Dufay Collective, The City
Musick, I Fagiolini and La Nuova Musica and is a founder member of the
Fontanella Recorder Quintet and Bardos Band, with whom she has recorded
for BBC TV, Radio 3 and 4. She has toured with Shakespeare's Globe
Theatre and the Young Vic. Having developed an obsession with electronics
in recent years, she is devising a solo programme exploring the sounds of
historical instruments with loop pedals and effects.

She is a regular film session musician and can be heard on soundtracks
including The Hobbit, Les Misérables, Grand Hotel Budapest and Mary
Queen of Scots.

Rebecca teaches at the Royal College of Music Junior Department, and has
given classes in Oxford University, Guildhall School of Music and Drama,
Birmingham University and Conservatoire, and is in demand as a regular
guest adjudicator in the UK.
Mr Keith Beniston

Keith Beniston gained his Music College degree (GLCM)
and performance Diploma (FLCM) having studied the
organ, and improvisation with Gordon Phillips and William
Lloyd Webber, plus a Post-Graduate teaching qualification
at London University (PGCE)

Following initial years as Assistant Director of Music at a large London School
Keith became a lecturer at University of West London, teaching keyboard
harmony, aural skills, choral conducting and improvisation. He became a
music examiner in 1989, and became Chief Examiner for London College of
Music Examinations in 1996. From 2002 to 2010 he was Chief Music
Examiner for Trinity College London, visiting most countries in which British
music exams take place: USA, Spain, India, Egypt, New Zealand, Australia,
Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and of course Hong Kong. In 2012, Keith
joined ABRSM. He is thus well used to making musical assessments of solo
performances on all instruments, including instrumental and vocal ensembles.
He has been a competition adjudicator in the UK, Ireland, Canada, New
Zealand, and for Parsons Music in Hong Kong.

Keith maintains a busy performing life. Twenty years as Organist and
Director of Music at Westminster Central Hall, in charge of the vast four
manual Hill organ, and from 2018 the Director of Music at the church of St.
John the Evangelist, Boxmoor, Hemel Hempstead. He undertakes regular
concert work as an organist, accompanist, arranger and conductor, in the UK
and in Richmond, USA, over time playing many of the most celebrated British
organs in cathedrals and concert halls such as London’s Royal Albert Hall,
including, recently as soloist with the Band of the Coldstream Guard, playing
the Saint Saëns Organ Symphony. His conducting has embraced the major
choral repertoire with orchestras: Creation, Elijah, Messiah, Mozart's Requiem,
etc., along with John Rutter's substantial works such as the Magnificat, and
Feel the Spirit, etc., most of the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas and many other
musical shows. He has created special small-orchestra versions for many of
them including recently, Oliver and My Fair Lady.

Keith is honoured to have been invited to participate in this, his third Hong
Kong Schools Music Festival.
Prof Venera Bojkova

Venera Bojkova was born in Sofia, Bulgaria and studied
at the State Conservatoire of Music, graduating in Piano
Performance and Choral Conducting in 1991. Prior to
this she has also studied harp as her first instrument at the
State Music School in Sofia.

After her graduation from the Music Academy, Venera Bojkova performed
throughout Bulgaria as a pianist recitalist and as a concerto soloist.

In 1991 she become pianist in residence in the Northern Province South
Africa, and in 1993 settled in the UK, playing and teaching extensively. She
appears as a recitalist, concerto soloist and chamber music player and has
performed throughout the UK as well as in Europe, Russia, China, US and
South Africa.

From 2002 to 2005, she performed with the Broadwood Quintet – Music for
Piano and Wind Ensemble, with whom she recorded a CD.

Since 1998, she has been part of a piano duo with fellow Bulgarian pianist
Valentina Seferinova with whom she performs regularly in the UK and Europe
and has recorded two CDs of music for two pianos and recordings for the
Polish record label Acte Preable.

Since 2013, she has performed and recorded as a member of the Vladigerov
Piano Trio with cellist Alexander Somov and violinist Lucy Jeal.

In addition to teaching the Piano at the Sage Weekend Music School and
students at Durham and Newcastle University, Prof Bojkova leads a popular
series of piano master classes at the Caedmon Hall, Gateshead and is Director
of the Bishop Auckland Choral Society.

Prof Bojkova maintains a parallel career as a harpist, appearing with
orchestras throughout north-east of England.
Miss Gabrielle Burgin Lister
Gabrielle is based in the UK. She studied at the Royal
Manchester College of Music, winning the Jeanne Bretey
Scholarship for Singing. After graduation, her early
career was in music education, teaching classes of young
children in a junior school before taking a post as Director
of Music in a grammar school, a post she held for ten years.
In addition to regular classroom teaching and advanced academic work, her
extra-curricular activities involved the training of several choirs and
instrumental groups. A freelance career followed, working as a private
teacher and as a visiting voice specialist in a number of public schools, at
Trent University, and in Birmingham Conservatoire Junior Department.

Gabrielle studied privately in London with some distinguished teachers. She
worked briefly with the BBC Northern Singers; in a solo career her soprano
repertoire embraced French, German, Italian and English Song; opera;
oratorio and other large-scale choral works.

As a voice teacher, Gabrielle has worked with pupils of all ages, from young
singers to adult professionals. Along with consultancy work and event
management, Gabrielle continues a busy adjudicating schedule and is
increasingly in demand. She brings a wealth of experience to her work as an
adjudicator member of the British and International Federation of Festivals
(BIFF), specialising in solo voice, choral and music theatre classes, sometimes
directing master classes and workshops. In conjunction with BIFF and the
University of Leeds, she gained a postgraduate qualification in Adjudication
and Performance Assessment. Her work takes her all over the UK, to the
Irish Republic, and overseas. Gabrielle is delighted to be returning to Hong
Kong for this, her third visit.
Ms Francesca Chan

Ms Francesca Chan is a world-renowned Hong Kong
soprano. Her musical odyssey began in Hong Kong at an
early age with piano lessons that continued throughout
secondary school in England. Accepted into the Guildhall
School of Music and Drama in London, Francesca first
took the piano as her principal study and the voice, with its
requisite training in languages and stage movement, as a
secondary instrument. She was permitted to change her principal instrument
only when her voice reached maturity at 18.
Back in Hong Kong after her graduation, Francesca met, and eventually
married, Clive Simpson. With her husband's encouragement and support,
she returned to Guildhall School for advanced training and developed into an
art song specialist. That was followed by extensive coaching by the likes of
Peter Pears, Vera Rózsa, Dalton Baldwin and Yi-Kwei Sze.
In a business known to offer exiguous opportunities to classical singers,
Francesca has established herself successfully as a professional performer and
teacher. Even more remarkably for a singer from Hong Kong, she has
enjoyed an international career, collaborating with eminent pianists such as
Geoffrey Parsons, Graham Johnson, David Harper and Roger Vignoles at
some of the most prestigious halls, including Wigmore Hall and Royal
Festival Hall in London, and Sydney Opera House.
As a regular performer on radio and TV, Francesca has been heard in
Australia, New Zealand, Holland, Switzerland, Germany, Taiwan, Korea,
Japan, Macau, mainland China and, of course, Hong Kong. In her home city,
she has been a frequent guest artist at festivals, art and educational
institutions, special consular events, and in numerous anniversary concerts.
Francesca is an unfaltering advocate of music that is new to the local
audience, be it works by early 20th century European and American composers
or contemporary Chinese composers. In 2015, Francesca released a
double-CD set of live recital recordings, My Song Journey, as a testament to
her lifelong dedication to the art of song and in memory of her late husband,
Clive Simpson, a founder of Radio Television Hong Kong’s classical music
radio station, RTHK Radio 4.
Francesca continues to devote her time and energy as a voice teacher and
lecturer. She founded the Cantabile Trio and the Cantabile Quartet.
Currently, she conducts Cantabile Singers, a vocal group she established with
her students.
Prof Hing-yan Chan

Professor Hing-yan Chan earned his Doctor of Musical
Arts (DMA) in music composition from the University of
Illinois at Urbana Champaign. He joined the Department
of Music at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 1998,
and for more than eleven years served as its Head
(2002-2007) and later Chairperson (2010-2016).

Lauded for their subtle mediation between Chinese elements and Western
idioms, Professor Chan’s compositions have been heard around the world at
prestigious festivals. Recent works include three chamber operas (2018, 2015
and 2013). The first two were commissioned by the Hong Kong Arts Festival,
who also entrusted Professor Chan as the composer and Music Director of an
extravaganza staged cantata to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Hong
Kong’s handover in 2017. Professor Chan served as Artist Associate
(2016-2018) of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, his other key collaborator. Over
the years, the orchestra has commissioned and presented his works at home and
abroad in Europe (2005), South America (2010), Canada and New York (2012),
Taiwan (2016), Beijing (2010), and Shanghai (2007).

Professor Chan received the Best Artist Award (Music) at the Hong Kong Arts
Development Awards in 2013. His three collaborations with the City
Contemporary Dance Company (2009, 2007 and 2005) won him much acclaim
as well as a Hong Kong Dance Award in 2008, when he also received
commendation for Persons with Outstanding Contributions to the Development
of Arts and Culture in the Secretary for Home Affairs’ Commendation Scheme.

At HKU, Professor Chan was conferred the Outstanding Research Student
Supervisor Award (2013-2014), in recognition of his guidance to postgraduate
students in their pursuit of research excellence. In addition, he has been an
advisor to HKU’s Cultural Management Office since its inception, and has been
instrumental in planning and delivering a number of innovative programmes for
its MUSE series.
Mr Sze-yau Chan

Born in Hong Kong, Mr Sze-yau Chan studied at the
Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts since the age
of ten and obtained his first degree at the Indiana
University Jacobs School of Music on full scholarships.

Mr Chan is a prize winner in numerous prizes and
scholarships including the “Instrumentalist of the year” at
the Llangollen Music Eisteddfod in Wales, the 11th Hong Kong Asia Piano
Open Competition, the Second TOYAMA Asian Youth Music Competition, he
had also been awarded the Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarship and the
Bernard Van Zuiden Music Prize. Mr Chan has performed in the various
cities in North America, Europe and China and took part in concert series
including the Rudolph Ganz Hall and Steinway Hall concert series in Chicago
and Paris Salon Concert.

Presently Mr Chan is teaching at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing
Arts and Hong Kong Baptist University. He has also been sitting on
competition jury in Hong Kong and China as well as giving lectures, talks and
master classes in various Asian cities.
Prof Richard Cionco

A Steinway Artist, Richard Cionco is a graduate of the
University of Maryland and The Juilliard School.
Important chamber music performances include those at
Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, the Festival of New
American Music in Sacramento, the Sulzbach-Rosenberg
International Music Festival in Germany, and at the Orfeo
Music Festival in Italy.

He has performed in recitals in nearly every major US city and his
performances of Liszt’s complete 12 Transcendental Etudes have brought him
rave reviews.

Prof Cionco has recorded solo and chamber music by Daniel Kingman for
Innova Records and his first solo CD, Latin American Music for Solo Piano,
on the Centaur Records label has received rave reviews, notably by the
American Record Guide. In 2012, he released a solo CD of Beethoven’s late
piano music, and a CD of music by American composer, Sunny Knable, both
on the Centaur label. Each summer he serves on the artist faculty of the
Orfeo International Music Festival and Competition in Northern Italy and
performs at the Samsø Piano Festival in Denmark. He has given master
classes, lectures, and recitals and has served as adjudicator in China and Hong
Kong. His solo and concerto performances have taken him to Japan, Taiwan,
Canada, Denmark, Italy, the Czech Repbulic, and Slovakia.

Prof Cionco was a Teaching Fellow for David Dubal at The Juilliard School
for four years and is presently Professor of Piano at California State
University, Sacramento where he teaches, performs, and composes. He also
enjoys running competitively and cooking, as well as hiking far and wide.