Suzuki Music Academy of Hong Kong

"Music Exists for the purpose of growing an admirable heart" ~Shinichi Suzuki

SMAHK Students Join 4 Nations Virtual Concert!

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On Sunday, 22 November, several of our students were wearing their concert best at the early hour of 7:30a.m. Their instruments were in tune, and they had their pre-recorded accompaniment ready for the sound check before the 4 Nations Virtual Concert. Sponsored by the Centro Suzuki Buenos Aires, SMAHK students were joined by performers from Argentina, Chile and Japan. Here are the students’ thoughts about the concert:

~from Annika

I think the concert was brilliant, special, and very well organised. It was nice seeing kids from different countries (that study the Suzuki method) play their pieces too. Since it’s challenging to see kids in person even from HK, it was super special to see kids from Chilé, Argentina and Japan on Zoom. The part I enjoyed the most was watching kids play pieces familiar to me as well as new pieces. I also enjoyed getting to share my piece which was Minuet 2.

~from Bianca

It was fun! I liked hearing other students play from other countries. They all sounded pretty. I feel proud about how I did my song.

~from Cecilia

Overall, I was proud of my performance for the online concert. I was most confident about my intonation. I was happy that I could match with the piano accompaniment almost all the time. The vibrato was also consistent. Although the thumb and elbow technique were the ones I practiced most, and were the ones that were most important about playing the piece, I could have really thought about it more in the process of playing Rameau Gavotte. I could improve by checking and paying attention to it from time to time. I could have also had more dynamic differences, making the music more interesting for the audience to listen to. even though I practiced the sweet tone for Gavotte 2 for a long time, there still was not a very sweet tone when I played it, making it sound like I was playing a straight line out of my violin with no emotions. I am very grateful that I was invited to the 4 Nations Virtual Concert Performance held by the Suzuki staffs from Argentina!

~from Charlotte

This was an interesting concert. It was enlightening to know how music can transcend ethnicities to express feelings. While hearing the performances, although they were played by musicians from different cultures, I felt a sense of connection over the feelings that were expressed. Music is universal!

A memorable part was hearing Suzuki pieces played on guitar. The notes had a special vibration to it, emanating a distinctive, warm feeling compared to the violin, viola, cello, and piano. It surprised me like when I heard the Cello version of Gigue by Bach (Book 7). It broadened my understanding of sounds and musical interpretation. 

Thank you for this opportunity. 

~from Shreyas

I really enjoyed playing in the Four Nations Concert. It was inspiring to see how the love of music can connect communities from all around the world. Especially in times like these, when we can feel disconnected even from our own communities, it was exciting to perform alongside students from Argentina, Chile, Japan and Hong Kong. Thank you to SMAHK for providing us with this wonderful opportunity.

Reflections from the Performers: Book 1 Viola Recital ~ Aston & Yeh Joon

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A chance to perform the Book Recital live in person with Ms. Sonomi…on Halloween! We were so fortunate that our October Book Recitals were able to be held in person. Each student had a parent attend live, as well as family joining by Zoom.

~ from Aston

Is great to have my book 1 recital this year! Is great to have Yeh Joon perform with me! 

~ from Yeh Joon

I felt a bit nervous. I liked it and I was happy when it was finished. I was happy that there was no more tension. I think that I could do better in my next recital. It was hard to play with a mask and I hope that next time we could play without one, I also thought that it was more special because it was on Halloween.

PlayIn with the Philadelphia Orchestra!

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Thanks to COVID-19, one of the gifts that we’ve been given in this tumultuous year is people coming up with creative new ways to share music together. Recently, the Philadelphia Orchestra offered a chance for students worldwide to join in a Zoom PlayIn. One of our SMAHK students took advantage of the opportunity. Lincoln and his mum, Virginia, share with us about their experience:

by Lincoln Liu and Virginia Wan

from Lincoln

It was very good! During the PlayIN, I was so excited and forgot about the time in Hong Kong. After it finished, I suddenly found that I was tired because it was 12am. It was a very special and pleasant experience! I enjoyed it very much! It was a lot of fun!

From Virginia –
It was a golden opportunity to join the PlayIN with The Philadelphia Orchestra, one of the “Big Five” American orchestras. When I knew that there would be such a great PlayIN opportunity, I struggled for a while as it would start at 11pm Hong Kong time and finish at around 12am and my boy would need to go to school in the next day. However, as it was really a fabulous opportunity, I thought of a solution – let the boy sleep in the afternoon so that he could sleep later. Looking back, both my boy and I think that it is really worth to join it! My boy enjoyed it so much and was so happy during that hour. I am very impressed that the teacher who led the playIN played the music pieces so well with great enthusiasm. She led us go into the music and made us feel how beautiful the music is! We experienced “Beautiful Heart, Beautiful Tone”!
There were more than 300 participants from around the world joining the PlayIN. How great being part of Suzuki community, we can enjoy and appreciate music together in different occasions, even in the difficult time with Covid-19. It is an invisible support to all of us.
Our special thanks to the lead teacher during the PlayIN, Dara Morales, and the organisers from the Philadelphia Orchestra, who shared the happy moments with the kids, especially in this difficult time with Covid-19, the kids are generally bored, lacking of social gatherings.
Last but not the least, thank you very much for Suzuki Music Academy of Hong Kong, who nurtures kids with beautiful music, let us know about this PlayIN opportunity and suggested us to participate in it!

April Musical Moments

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Due to the Easter holiday, we have only two Musical Moments during the month of April. Please enjoy these photos of our student performances!

Reflections from the Performers: Alice and Wesley

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Wesley and Alice performed their Book 1 recital, with Ms. Shoko assisting on piano. Here are their thoughts about their performance!

~from Wesley

I felt nervous and happy when I was playing the recital. I thought I would make some mistakes and the audience would laugh, so I played carefully. After all, I think I did well especially on Andantino but I could have done better.

~from Alice

I was nervous at the starting. But when I played Twinkle I felt better. I felt a surge of proudness echo through my body, I was ready for my first solo! As soon as Twinkles ended I knew it would be Perpetual Motion. I took a deep breath, did a nervous smile and stepped onto the stage. I felt soooo special that I smiled for nothing. I just couldn’t stop that smile until I finished bowing the last bow and sat down. All solos worked just like this and here came Gavotte (F.J. Gossec). Luckily the slurs were alright. I had finished the recital, (alive) and I played the pieces all right. I was proud.

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