Professor Chan Wing Wah, JP
Prof. Chan was the first Resident Composer of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and has written 10 symphonies plus over 200 musical works including songs for children and adults, chamber and orchestral music with western, Chinese, Japanese and Korean instruments. Seven of his ten Symphonies were released on CD by Hugo Productions performed by orchestras in Hong Kong and Russia. The music scores of Symphony No. 5 ‘The Three Kingdoms’ & No. 6 ‘Reunification’ were published by People’s Music Publishing House.
His music has received numerous awards including the 1st Prize in the International Double Reed Society Composition Contest, USA; the Yoshiro Irino Memorial Award from the Asian Composers League and several local awards. His works had been performed in over 30 countries and his biography is included in the New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians Online.
Prof. Chan became the Music Director of the Hong Kong Oratorio Society(established in 1956) from 1995 and has been leading this choir with regular concerts and occasional concert tours. In 2017 he conducted the HKOS and orchestra to perform his Symphony No.8 ‘This Boundless Land’ for organ, choir and orchestra in the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. In 2019 he brought the HKOS together with the Vancouver Oratorio Society to Toronto for the premiere of his Symphony No.9 ‘Universal Harmony’. His Symphony No.10 ‘Spring and Autumn’ for Chinese Orchestra was recently premiered in two concerts featuring his music by the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra in July, 2022. The Hong Kong Government appointed him Justice of the Peace in 2000. He was invited to become a Council member of the Chinese Musicians Association in 2009.
Prof. Chan received his BA in music from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) studying composition with Professor David Gwilt. He went on to finish his Master and Doctor of Music degrees from the University of Toronto on a Canadian Commonwealth Scholarship studying with Professor John Beckwith. Internationally he had served as an Executive Committee member of the International Society for Contemporary Music and the Vice-Chairman of the Asian Composers’ League. Locally he had been Professor of Music, Associate Dean of Arts, and Chairman of the Music Department at CUHK. He had also dedicated a part of his time serving as the Former Regional Council member, Hong Kong Arts Development Council member, Jockey Club Music and Dance Fund Chairman among others. He is now Associate Dean of the CUHK(Shenzhen) School of Music, Chairman of the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong, Music Director of the Hong Kong Oratorio Society and Allegro Singers, Chairman of the HK Association of Choral Societies, Council member of the Hong Kong Children’s Choir and Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. He also serves as advisor in numerous groups including the China Musicians Association, Hong Kong Dance Company, New Tune Chinese Orchestra, Windpipe Chinese Music Ensemble, Harmonic Singers and several others.