21 August 2024
Oakland, CA, USA

Next week around this time, I’ll already be on the way back to Hong Kong and the start of term is particularly different this time as I’ll take on the position of (Acting) Director of the HKBU Academy of Music. Administration isn’t exactly my line of work – I keep explaining to anyone who wants to know that I’m a composer and everything else in the service of that! – but the incredibly energy behind the institution and the strides Hong Kong has made as a destination for multidisciplinary projects has also revealed a dearth of talent and global experience in administrative roles, particularly in some of the major government agencies. I’d like to think that, from my loftier perch, my own decidedly ‘practical’ and out-of-Hong Kong experience can add something constructive, if not entirely transformative, to the creative arts scene in the city.

The concert listing for the European premiere of Vivacissimo (2023) is now up at the Neues Kunsthaus on October 23rd, with my friend and legendary Russian painter Pavel Otdelnov debuting a brand new video work and dancers from the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste, a new choreography as well. It wasn’t quite supposed to be that way, as I initially hoped to show the world premiere Hong Kong version also in Zurich, but the intractable artistic direction put a swift end to that, and I am actually tremendously excited for the new version which will give the music a completely new life and context!

Likewise, soon, I will finally be able to share news aka a concert listing of the world premiere of Otherhood (2022) in Helsinki and a few more events for the autumn. But truly the biggest ‘event’ is the commencement of the new semester and the possible new paths to take with the institution- it’s not my thing, but maybe I’m made for it anyway.