Colleen Lee & Hong Kong Sinfonietta

EVENT DESCRIPTION

**Due to Typhoon Saola, Hong Kong Sinfonietta regrets to announce the cancellation of this concert, originally to be held on 1 September 2023 (Friday) at 8pm at Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall**

Conductor: Clemens Schuldt
Piano: Colleen Lee (HKS Artist Associate 2010-2011)
Composer: Charles Kwong (HKS Artist Associate 2020-2022)

Hong Kong’s very own star pianist and prizewinner at the 15th International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition Colleen Lee adds to her long list of successful collaborations with Hong Kong Sinfonietta, this time presenting the world première of Charles Kwong’s Piano Concerto – written especially for her and the orchestra – under the baton of celebrated German conductor Clemens Schuldt. He will also conduct Brahms’ captivating Symphony No 1 and Weber’s Euryanthe Overture.

Leading Hong Kong composer Charles Kwong has enjoyed a rapid rise to international spotlight in recent years, having had his works performed by the likes of London Philharmonic Orchestra and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. Paying homage to the legendary pianist Keith Jarrett, Kwong’s Piano Concerto contemplates the role of an individual in the rapidly evolving 21^st-century society.

Programme

Weber
Euryanthe Overture

Charles Kwong
Piano Concerto (world première)
Commissioned by Hong Kong Sinfonietta

Brahms
Symphony No 1 in C minor, Op 68

ABOUT THE ARTIST / ORGANISER

One of Hong Kong’s flagship orchestras, Hong Kong Sinfonietta has brought music closer to the community, and achieved significant local and international recognition for its passionate performances and innovative programming. The orchestra has collaborated with an illustrious array of international musicians and groups, including in recent years Ilya Gringolts, Martin Helmchen, Sergei Nakariakov, Jean-Guihen Queyras, Krzysztof Penderecki, The Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet and Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch.

Hong Kong Sinfonietta is a regular guest at international arts festivals and has toured 47 cities around the world. As an avid believer of keeping music alive and contemporary, the orchestra commissions and performs new works every year and ventures into new initiatives, recently receiving wide acclaim for its Back On Stage concert film series and becoming the first local orchestra to appear in cinemas. Following the success of the first edition in 2018, the orchestra organised the 2nd Hong Kong International Conducting Competition in 2023, attracting applications from 45 countries/regions around the world and providing an invaluable platform for young conductors to establish their careers.