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What does a banshee sound like? Who was Pangu, the Chinese creation god? How was Chopin inspired by mythological nymphs?
Join composer Alex Ho and pianist Aidan Chan on a haunted journey across Chinese and Western cultures. Inspired by All Hallows, they trace the stories and folklore reaching back to ancient Chinese and Pagan traditions that continue to haunt us today. The performance culminates in the world premiere of Alex Ho’s new commission, 3 Chinese Myths.
Showcasing evocative solo piano music from the last 200 years, the programme intertwines the fantastical sound world of 20th century American pioneer Henry Cowell, the timeless intimacy of Chopin’s piano works, and the music of today in Alex Ho’s compositions drawing on Chinese mythology and folksong.
Henry Cowell ‘3 Irish Legends’
‘The Banshee’
Adam Mickiewicz ‘Świtezianka’ (from Ballads and Romances, trans. Charles S. Kraszewski)
F. Chopin Prelude in D flat major, Op.28 No.15
F. Chopin Ballade No.3 in A-flat major, Op.47
Sage Stanescu Samhain Ritual Performance
Aidan Chan/Naijuu ‘Wickerman’ (Samhain)
Alex Ho ‘torn, to the ground, exhausted, sobbing’
Alex Ho 3 Chinese Myths (world premiere)
Described as “fearless and uncompromising”, Aidan Chan is an Irish-Chinese pianist whose work primarily explores identity and post-structuralism through performance. He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in the US (Carnegie Hall), UK (Wigmore Hall), Hong Kong, Switzerland, France, China and across Ireland.
As a concerto soloist he has performed with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, the Philharmonic Orchestra of Budweis and the TUD Sinfonia. Aidan has been a frequent prize-winner in competitions in the UK, Ireland, Germany and Austria. He won top prize at the 2016 Fr Frank Maher Classical Music Awards, and was the recipient of the 2019 Trench Award and Audience Choice Prize in Ireland.
In 2023, he was awarded both the Feis Ceoil Morris Grant Bursary for-pianists and the RDS Music Bursary.
Alex Ho is a British-Chinese composer whose music and stage works have been described as “menacing and poetic” (The Guardian), “important and impressive” (Opera Today) and a “fresh, different idea that captured the imagination” (Scottish New Music Awards 2021).
He has had pieces performed/commissioned by the London Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Manchester Camerata, BBC Radio 3 and Royal Opera House.
Alex’s music theatre piece, ‘Untold’, co-created with Olivier-nominated choreographer Julia Cheng, premiered at Concertgebouw Brugge and O. Festival Rotterdam in Spring 2023 and won the FEDORA Opera Prize 2023 for a “bold and moving creation”.
Alex is supported by Glyndebourne Opera’s 3-year Balancing the Score residency programme.
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