Amelia Chan

violinist

Amelia Chan is currently concertmaster of the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong (CCOHK).

She came to this position from her tenure as concertmaster of the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra (US). An experienced leader, Amelia has served in the concertmaster chair under acclaimed conductors such as Sir Neville Marriner, Michael Tilson Thomas, Manfred Huss, Sergiu Commissiona, Anton Coppola, Zdeněk Mácal, Jorge Mester, Julius Rudel, and Gerard Schwarz. She has also performed with the New York Philharmonic extensively. As a chamber musician, Amelia has served as first violinist of the Montclaire String Quartet, and has collaborated with guitarist Sharon Isbin, accordionist Richard Galliano, violinist Lara St. John, the Ying Quartet, members of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players (NYC), among others. She has appeared as soloist with orchestras including the West Virginia Symphony, the International Virtuosi Orchestra on tour in Central America, the New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra (NYC), the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra (NYC), and the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong. She has shared the stage as co-soloist with acclaimed flutist Sir James Galway, and frequently acts as director for the City Chamber Orchestra. She has performed at the Costa Rica Music Festival, the Guatemala Music Festival, Cooperstown Chamber Music Festival in New York and the Pacific Music Festival (Japan).

Amelia has been heard on WQXR, New York; WQED, Pittsburgh; West Virginia Public Broadcasting; BBC Radio Scotland, Scotland; and RTHK Radio 4, Hong Kong.

As an educator, Amelia approaches the teaching of technique through the lens of whole-body biomechanics, and on the principle that techniques of playing an instrument need to be relational to the body, and to how it moves, instead of relying on a static one-size-fits-all method. She believes in a focused and deep education that goes beyond rote training, where the student learns discernment and critical thinking, while sifting through the layers of intellect needed to decipher the depths of the musical art, to get to the natural, joyful simplicity of music-making.

Amelia holds undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees from the Mannes College of Music and Manhattan School of Music (NY). She began her violin studies in the junior school at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. Her major teachers included Thomas Wang, Alice Waten, Albert Markov, Shirley Givens, Lisa Kim, Yoko Takebe, Sheryl Staples, Glenn Dicterow, and double-bassist Julius Levine.

For more information on Amelia, please go to her Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/ameliachanviolin/ 

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"Concertmaster Amelia Chan in particular played with passion, acting as the vibrant soul of the ensemble.” South China Morning Post 

“…gutsy solo violin throughout [by] concertmaster Amelia Chan…” theprickle.org

Resilience

May 30, 2024  /  Amelia Chan


Resilience is often described as a kind fortitude and teeth-gritting willpower that pushes one to do something they do not want to do, “for their own good”. When I see kids being persistent in solving a problem on their own accord in their lessons, not wanting to stop even when I suggest that they do-that to me is clear resilience on display. And I think it comes from simply believing that something is truly important to them. Kids who initially told me they just had no patience for slow practice, or the little ones who might get teary when we stayed on a problem for too long-I watch them grow to become thinking beings who take ownership and pride of their learning and work-to develop resilience as human beings. That, to me, is the heart of education or learning.

By the same token, I see kids not feeling the safety to simply stay connected to themselves, and I see the direct correlation between that and what might come off as indication of relatively low ability or intelligence. It’s not that everyone with (intellectual) intelligence is emotionally healthy, but you can bet that manifestation of intelligence comes at a cost of many compensations; and the functioning made only possible by hidden suffering. Sometimes the difference isn’t in levels of intelligence but capacity. Some kids are already maxed out on just trying to survive when they can’t even connect to themselves.

I don’t think resilience in adults is that much more complicated. Whether it is related to making a decision on what the right thing to do is, or what to be persistent about-it still goes back to what’s important to you. Important in that deepest way to the self. In the way that kids feel and know, if allowed. In the way that the Little Prince (the book) describes “matters of consequences”. Whether it is about personal relationships or love or morality, it all comes down to just that: what is deeply important to you. And if someone recognizes what it means for something to be truly important to them, if that voice is allowed to flourish and the person is encouraged and helped to stay connected to it, you have the resilience that will be a strong anchor of your life.

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