Concert Program

World Music Concert Series

Tradition in Transformation: New Music for Chinese Instruments

Guest Performers
Amely Zhou, erhu
Hong-Da Chin, dizi
Po-Chuan Chiang, piano
Ming Jung Kim, piano

Friday, November 20, 2026
5 p.m.
Recital Hall

Program

Program Notes

Erhu, the Chinese fiddle, possesses multifaceted personalities. Three Personalities is written for
Amely Zhou Jiali for the lyricism and superb skills of her erhu playing. It draws inspiration
from her three favorite erhu personalities and techniques – the lyrical nature of the erhu,
ricochet and harmonics.

The lyricism displayed by the erhu resembles that of the poignancy of the human voice.
There are three techniques that characterize the lyricism in the first movement. There are
the pitch bend, wide vibrato and legato bowing. The movement title “Introduction” is used
in many Chinese traditional repertoire to set the tone for the music.

The ricochet technique on the erhu is commonly used to imitate horse galloping in traditional
erhu repertoire. In this movement, the erhu and dizi take turn to “gallop” and the other soars
through the ricochet gestures with a melody.

The third movement highlights the harmonic glissandos on both the D string and A string
of the erhu. This movement takes on an improvisatory nature with the erhu gliding through
the harmonic series while the dizi improvises using the notes on the harmonic series in a
sporadic nature.

——

The Composer reflects on the recent passing of his Aunt Norma, he takes three “stages”
of her life and try to find commonality with everyone’s life. These “stages” will be the theme
of the three movements of this work: I. Destiny, II. Disappointment, III. Calling.

Description of Movement One: Soon after World War II, my Aunt Norma, who was the sixth
child of the seven living children, works at an office doing secretary work in Hong Kong.
One of her best friends decided to apply to a nursing school in Australia and asked Norma
to do the same. While she does not know much about nursing, she inevitably agreed upon
her friend’s insistence. To her surprise, both were accepted and just like that, she attended
the nursing school and became a nurse. Fate has a curious way of determining one’s destiny.

Description of Movement Two: Upon her graduation from nursing school, she returned to
Hong Kong expecting to marry her fiancé. However, the man she loved had found someone
else, and their marriage was off. Broken hearted, she went to London, England, practiced
her new profession in a hospital. Admis of her disappointment in her love life, she found
happiness working in a hospital where people there call her “sister” — a name for a nurse
or a nun.

Description of Movement Three: From then on, she devoted herself to helping patience
and served in various capacities in the church. After travelling around the world, including
holy cities like Rome and Bethlehem, she settled in Vancouver, Canada, serving the poor
and the needy until retirement. She found her calling as a devoted Catholic, being close
to the church is her ultimate joy in life.

——

Composed in 1959 by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang, The Butterfly Lovers Concerto is one of the most recognized works in Chinese classical music. It draws inspiration from the ancient Chinese legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai—often referred to as China’s “Romeo and Juliet”—and blends Western symphonic form with the melodic language of traditional Chinese opera and folk music. Originally written for solo violin and Western orchestra, tonight we will perform an adaptation for erhu and dizi.

The concerto unfolds as a musical narrative with pairs of alternating slow and fast sections. The first pair serves as the famous slow introduction (known as a “framing narrative”), followed by the excitement of Zhu and Liang’s time at school together. The second pair depicts Zhu’s call to return home and discovery that her father has arranged for her to be married to a rich merchant; Zhu argues with her father but is unsuccessful at calling off the wedding. The third pair describes Liang’s slow death from heartbreak, which contrasts with Zhu’s supposedly happy wedding scene. However, when the wedding party comes across Liang’s grave, the grave opens up! Zhu leaps into the grave, and the two lovers are transformed into butterflies, never to be separated again.

Composer Biographies

Twice winner of Juno Awards for Best Classical Composition, University of Toronto Professor CHAN Ka Nin’s works have been performed by ensembles and artists nationally and internationally. His numerous international awards include Béla Bartók International Composers’ Competition, Barlow International Competitions, International Horn Society Composition Contest, PROCAN Young Composers’ Competition and Amherst Saxophone Quartet Composition Competition. Among his recent works, his “Welcoming Spring” was premiered by the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra in January 2023. His second full-length opera, “Dragon’s Tale,” premiered during the Luminato Festival in June 2023.. In the same month, Chan’s trio, “Among Friends,” was presented by the Chamber Music Society at Lincoln Center in New York. His Harp Concerto was premiered by the Chamber Orchestra Hong Kong with harpist Teresa Suen-Campbell in April 2025. A recording of three of his string orchestra compositions as performed by Sinfonia Toronto are set to be released in 2026.

He Zhanhao is a composer, conductor and a professor at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. He was a director of the Chinese Musicians’ Association for several terms, and Vice President of the Shanghai Musicians’ Association. He was a regular jurist of the China Gold Record Awards and is Head of the Guzheng Professional Appraisal Committee of the Golden Bell Awards.

In his music career of more than half a century, He has continued to search ways to “add Chinese flavour to foreign musical forms and introduce modern features to Chinese traditional music”. Some of his important compositions include the violin concerto, The Butterfly Lovers (co-written); the symphonic poem The Longhua Pagoda; A Diary of a Martyr for string quartet; the erhu concertos Farewell Grief, Love in a Chaotic World and Tears for the Heroes; The Girl Named No Sorrow Fantasia for erhu and orchestra; the guzheng concertos Sad Memories of Lin’an, The Overlord of Western Chu, and As the Peacock Flies to the Southeast; Mountains amidst Clouds for zheng and orchestra; zheng tone poem Lu You and Tang Wan; and the symphonic piece for nanyin, Chen San and Wuniang. Other important works of smaller scale include the symphonic pieces, By the Banks of Ili River and Huteng Dance Music, The Fragrance of Jasmine, Song of the Sisters for guzheng solo and the song Farewell Grief; etc.

From 1955 to 1959, Chen Gang was a student at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, studying composition. In 1959, Chen Gang, together with another student, He Zhanhao, composed the violin concerto Butterfly Lovers.
The violin concerto won five Golden Record prizes as well as a Platinum Record prize. The Concerto has also achieved enormous international success. Chen was a professor at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.
In his composition career, he composed and recomposed many classics in China, including Butterfly Lovers, Miaolin’s Morning, and The Golden Steel Smelting Furnace. He also composed a virtuoso violin solo piece: Sunshine in Tashkurgan, which is frequently performed in China. Chen died on 18 July 2026, at the age of 91.

Malaysian composer Hong-Da Chin’s music has been performed by the Canadian Chinese Orchestra, New Thread Quartet, Marilyn Shrude, John Sampen, Toledo Symphony Orchestra, Khasma Piano Duo, No Exit New Music Ensemble, Bent Frequency, Patchwork, among others. Besides composing, Chin plays the Chinese flutes and has performed at the Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Metropolitan Museum of Art, DiMenna Center, among others. Chin is associate professor of Composition and Music Theory at Western Illinois University, a member of the ADJ•ective Composers’ Collective and the Society of Malaysian Contemporary Composers. Chin is also an avid badminton player. hongdachin.com

Performer Biographies

Amely Zhou is a dedicated and multifaceted musician, specializing in erhu and guzheng performance, adjudication, and conducting. She graduated from York University with a Specialized Honours B.A. in Music in 2014 and an M.A. in Ethnomusicology in 2023. Amely began studying conducting under Lisette Canton and Mark Chambers and has participated in conducting programs such as the University of Toronto Wind Conducting Symposium in 2016, UBC Wind Conducting Symposium in 2017, and Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra Conducting Masterclass in 2018 and 2019.

From 2014 to 2016, Amely served as the conductor of the Toronto Chinese Youth Orchestra. From 2019 to 2020, she was Music Director of the Ontario Multicultural Music Association’s Mix Instruments Youth Orchestra, furthering her dedication to nurturing musical talent in diverse communities. Amely Zhou assumed the role of co-conductor of the NextGen Youth Orchestra at the Laurier Academy of Arts and Music from 2024-2025. In 2017, she assumed the role of Music Director for the Canadian Chinese Orchestra (CCO), leading the orchestra on tours in China and performing at prestigious venues such as the Markham Theatre, Sony Centre, and Mississauga Living Arts Centre.

Amely’s adjudication experience includes serving as a judge for the 16th Chinese Arts and Literary Contest for Youth in 2016, the Toronto Kiwanis Music Festival in 2017 and 2019, MusicFest Canada in 2023, and the Ottawa Kiwanis Music Festival in 2024. In 2025, Amely was invited to adjudicate the Dun Huang Cup Chinese instrumental competition.

As a soloist, Amely has achieved significant recognition, including winning the concerto competition at York University where she performed “Red Plum Capriccio” with the York University Symphony Orchestra. She was also invited to perform with the Canadian Sinfonietta. Amely has performed numerous new works composed for her by international composers and has contributed to over twenty albums, helping to promote global appreciation for Chinese music.

In 2020, Amely led a multi-ethnic ensemble called Estro-genesis, performing a series of Canadian works for the Toronto Music Garden’s summer music program. She also directed the Borderless Music project and produced a music documentary with the Small World Music Society, documenting the intersections of different musical cultures. She is a member of the Labyrinth Ensemble and has extensive experience collaborating with musicians from diverse backgrounds

Po-Chuan Chiang is a dedicated and accomplished pianist and educator. With a diverse educational background and a passion for the piano, Chiang has made significant contributions to the field through performance, teaching, and adjudication. Currently serving as Staff Pianist Coordinator at Western Illinois University (WIU).

In addition to his work as a collaborative pianist, Chiang has a rich history in teaching piano students of all ages and levels. He was co-director and faculty of WIU’s 2022 and 2024 piano camp for the Summer Music Institute and temporarily served as piano instructor at Monmouth College. Additionally, Chiang has been invited to give masterclasses to piano students and chamber ensembles at National University of the Arts, Walla Walla University, and the University of South Alabama.

Throughout his musical journey, he received numerous awards and scholarships including the prestigious Nancy Kennedy Wustman Memorial Award in Vocal Accompanying and American Protégé International Music Competition ensemble group. Additionally, he frequently collaborates and performs with violinist Qian Yin, and their CD album Brahms & Franck: Sonatas for Violin and Piano received the gold medal for classical in Global Music Award (March 2023). His artistry has not been confined to the concert stage alone. Chiang has made local TV and radio appearances, including performances on Classical King FM 98.1, Interlochen Public Radio, and WDWS Radio.