Find your inspiration at HKU MUSE’s 10th anniversary celebration
- Thriving on informative, innovative programming, and educational elements supported by HKU’s diverse academic resources, HKU MUSE has strived to become ‘a source of inspiration’.
- Offering unique perspectives from superb artists and interdisciplinary projects in the brilliant acoustics of the Grand Hall, sets HKU MUSE apart.
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In merely a decade, the University of Hong Kong’s MUSE (My University Spotlight Encounters) Concert Series successfully redefined concert presentation in the city and inspired music enthusiasts to reimagine their experiences of music enjoyment and appreciation.
HKU MUSE offers audience members a full immersion. Attracted by HKU MUSE’s ‘risk-taking’ spirit, like-minded world-class artists do not just perform at the renowned Grand Hall, they also engage with HKU’s professors in explorative conversations supported with well-researched literature, participate in original projects and interact with the audiences. The University’s academic resources, including knowledge from professors and input from students, enhance HKU MUSE’s intellectual enrichment activities and take them to another level.
You are welcome to HKU MUSE’s 10th anniversary celebration where an impressive line-up of illustrious artists is set to wow all music enthusiasts. Upcoming highlights include star violinist Isabelle Faust and world-acclaimed pianist Alexander Melnikov, who will collaborate on all of Beethoven’s 10 Sonatas for Violin and Piano in three concerts (March 31 to April 2). Faust and Melnikov’s joint recordings of these sonatas have won many awards, including the prestigious “Echo Klassik”, “Gramophone” and “Diapason d'Or”. The chance to hear “the most stimulating and fascinating accounts of the Beethoven Violin Sonatas in many years” (BBC Music Magazine) is not to be missed.
“The Faust-Melnikov duo is considered one of the best interpreters of these sonatas, and our Professor Daniel Chua [a world-renowned Beethoven expert] will hold a dialogue with both artists at the end of the three-day cycle,” says Sharon Lu, Programme Director of HKU MUSE.
Other programming feats include a pianistic extravaganza featuring Konstantin Lifschitz and Alexei Volodin. The renowned pianists will play – on two Steinway concert grands – treasured gems by Russian composers Medtner, Mussorgsky, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Shostakovich, and Stravinsky (April 14 to 16). In addition, Daishin Kashimoto, the First Concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic since 2009, will perform with Alessio Bax, Gramophone ‘Editor’s Choice’ pianist, in three violin sonatas by Mozart, Brahms, and Prokofiev (May 14). “If the multi-concert cycles are too demanding, then this concert is great for first-timers to try out,” Lu adds.
HKU MUSE’s journey started with the Grand Hall, which is a part of the HKU Centennial Campus expansion completed in 2012. The Grand Hall has since played a vital role in the University’s aspiration to become a diverse cultural hub. HKU has strived to fulfil a cultural mission for decades, says Professor Ian Holliday, the University’s Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning), and an advisor to HKU MUSE. For instance, the University Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG), opened in 1953, has been the longest continuous operation of its kind in Hong Kong. “We provide cultural programming through exhibitions, concerts, and an array of knowledge exchange activities, for students, staff, the local community, and visitors to Hong Kong.
HKU MUSE is unique
Supported by HKU’s Department of Music, HKU MUSE sets itself apart by curating programmes that are ‘innovative, inspiring, and informative’, with a host of distinguishing elements.
HKU MUSE lets music enthusiasts have the rare opportunity to enjoy the complete cycles of monumental works in Hong Kong. Over the past decade HKU MUSE presented complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas, Bartók String Quartets, Bach Well-Tempered Clavier, Schubert Piano Sonatas, Bach Cello Suites, and Schubert Song Cycles, among many others.
Leading universities of the world have a long tradition of presenting concerts, such as Princeton University Concerts, Stanford Live, and Cal Performances, Lu says. “HKU MUSE aspires to become Asia’s leading university presenter,” she continues, adding that the multi-purpose Grand Hall is an ideal concert venue, thanks to its acoustics system (by the same designer as Alice Tully Hall at New York’s Lincoln Center) considered by many top-notch musicians as the best in Hong Kong.
In addition to enjoying the concerts, the MUSE experience is enhanced by a diverse range of intellectual enrichment activities. They are developed and presented with extensive academic resources, including professors from HKU Department of Music and exchanges with leading universities in the world.
HKU MUSE also gives an entirely new definition to ‘artist engagement.’ HKU MUSE’s ‘risk-taking and innovative’ spirit inspires artists to unleash their passion for collaborating and sharing insights and ideas with the professors, students, and audiences. Talks in different languages are held to prepare the audiences to go on the journey with the artists. “They also work with our students in masterclasses. New inspirations blossom and sparks fly in these exchanges,” Lu notes.
Thanks to HKU MUSE’s fertile ground for experimentation, artists are encouraged to be open-minded with innovative ideas. “We have initiated interdisciplinary projects - a HKU forte - with various departments such as UMAG and the Faculty of Arts,” Lu notes. “We have also collaborated with other educational institutions, such as Bard College in New York, Tianjin Juilliard School, Duke University, University of Cambridge, just to name a few.”
Professor Holliday credits artists’ enthusiastic commitment and returns to HKU MUSE to its dedicated team. For instance, Professor Chan Hing-yan at the Department of Music, is a celebrated composer. Founder of HKU MUSE, Professor Daniel Chua is a world-renowned expert on Beethoven. They and other professors have hosted in-depth conversations and lecture-demonstrations with international and local musicians. “Interesting insights emerge and they enrich the programming,” he says, adding that Sharon proactively maintains her contact networks spanning the world. “The relationships HKU MUSE has built with the artists are part of its achievement.”
HKU MUSE has also evolved into a nurturing platform for students. Apart from the opportunities to perform with world’s top artists side by side, HKU students are involved in the concert administration, authoring the house programmes and helping out backstage and front of house. Some even get to present their original works, Lu says. “For example, the Szymanowski Quartet, Juilliard String Quartet, and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra musicians have played compositions by HKU students.”
Be inspired by HKU MUSE
Whether you are a highly knowledgeable connoisseur or have just begun exploring music, HKU MUSE’s concerts and enrichment activities are equally accessible. “At HKU MUSE, artists and scholars present content that is both informative and inspiring. We provide a platform where they can balance technicality and theories with artistic and humanistic experiences that resonate with the audiences,” she continues.