Conducting master classes in Hong Kong that you can sit in on, watched over by French orchestral maestro
- Edith Tam, co-founder of Hong Kong ensemble Le Gai, says there is little support for budding conductors in the city – and she plans to fill the gap
- French conductor Philippe Fournier will give feedback to participants in Tam’s two-day conducting master class, for which tickets are available to watch
We have all played at conducting – with fingers, chopsticks or other implements – when moved by a particularly powerful passage of orchestral music. But it turns out that an increasing number of people in Hong Kong are keen to do it for real.
“A radiography student at the Polytechnic University attended one of my conducting classes,” says conductor and horn player Edith Tam. “He plays the violin and even founded his own orchestra. Conducting is not something that only interests professional musicians.”
Tam is organising a two-day conducting master class next week led by the visiting French maestro Philippe Fournier, founder of Orchestre Symphonique Confluences.
On May 4-5, budding conductors from Hong Kong, Singapore and mainland China will deliver their own interpretations of Debussy’s Prelude a l’apres-midi d’un faune and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.5 by working with Hong Kong ensemble Le Gai, which Tam co-founded, and receive feedback from Fournier.
Members of the public can buy day passes and sit in on the sessions. On May 2, Le Gai and Fournier will also perform a French concert at St. John’s Cathedral.
Tam, who only took up conducting after she left music school, is a passionate speaker about the craft.
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While a lot of what a conductor does remains a mystery to the uninitiated, Tam says watching a good conductor on YouTube should be enough to help one appreciate what a difference he or she makes.
“For example, I really like the Italian conductor Gianandrea Noseda. I will never forget seeing him in concert with the BBC Philharmonic and how he makes you melt completely into the music.
“Even watching him on YouTube, it is amazing to see his connection with the players and how he shapes the music. He makes the music come out like a dragon.”
Tam grew up in a non-musical family in Wah Fu Estate, a public housing estate in Pok Fu Lam, and knows from experience just how little support there is for budding conductors.
She had returned to Hong Kong in 2006 with a master’s in horn performance and pedagogy from the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, England. Grateful for the guidance she received at secondary school, she was eager to help her alma mater develop a top-notch wind ensemble. To do that, she soon realised that she had to know how to conduct.
“It is so much quicker to deliver your message to the players if you know how to conduct and all the rehearsal techniques. Instead of saying everything with words, you can do it with simple gestures. It’s quite magical, really,” she says.
Tam saved up and joined overseas summer courses for conductors every year for 10 years, as no such training was available in Hong Kong, apart from for students at the Academy for Performing Arts.
Today, she leads various school orchestras in the city, as well as the Hong Kong Polytechnic University orchestra, and independent ensembles including Le Gai.
She co-founded Le Gai in 2018 with her life partner Janice Ho, an oboist, with the intention of bringing more joy to the local music scene (gai is French for “cheerful”).
“Most freelance musicians only meet up with each other when there’s a job,” Ho says. “We were keen to set up an ensemble built on friendship, to gather round a group of like-minded instrumentalists who socialise and have fun together.”
Ho, who teaches young musicians when she is not performing, says while few people will actually become conductors, as a field of study it is no longer as niche as it once was.
“Music training has always been about creativity. These days, young people don’t just learn how to play an instrument by following rules. They are not content with just joining the school orchestra,” she says.
“They form their own groups and they want to be in charge. They realise that ultimately, the best way to put your stamp on the music is to conduct.”
“Le Gai Ensemble: Impressions Symphoniques”, St. John’s Cathedral, 4-8 Garden Road, Central, May 2, 7.30-9pm. For tickets, visit the Impressions Symphoniques Le Gai Ensemble 2024 page on Boutir.
Conducting Masterclass with Phillipe Fournier, Munsang College, YYS Hall, 8 Dumbarton Road, Kowloon City, May 4-5. Email [email protected] for details.
