The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts has been a cradle of new musical talent in Hong Kong since it opened its gates in 1984. Head of Keyboard Studies Professor Gabriel Kwok, who has been with the Academy since its founding, and Professor Eleanor Wong, senior lecturer and artist-in-residence in the same department, are master teachers by any measure. The two have nurtured generations of young musicians, some of whom have gone on to become renowned artists on the global stage. Different artistic traditions have different ways of transmitting skills and knowledge, but all teachers worth their weight in gold, as these two are, value inspiration and aspire to change lives, in this case, through music.
Sharing their experiences learning music as children, both Professor Kwok and Professor Wong (known endearingly to her students as "Ms Wong") say they felt a true connection with music relatively late. Even though both had learnt to play the piano at a young age, it was not until they crossed paths with enlightening teachers and came into a nurturing environment that they fell in love with music.
Ms Wong was born into a family with seven children. One "house rule" in the Wong family was that everyone had to learn a musical instrument. However Ms Wong, as a young child, dreamt of becoming a cavalry officer, having been passionate about horses since her earliest years. Piano lessons were imposed upon her because her elder sister was learning the instrument. "In secondary school, I enjoyed Biology and Chemistry so much that I applied for and received a scholarship to further my studies in the US. But my father wanted me to go to the Royal Academy of Music with my elder sister instead. I obeyed, kind of confusedly. Then in the UK, under my teachers' inspired tutelage, I fell in love with music."
Sowing the Seeds of Music
As a music student in the UK, Ms Wong received numerous awards. She was, moreover, honoured with the Walter Macfarren Gold Medal and the Majorie Whyte Memorial Award when she graduated, the latter for being the most outstanding student of London's top four conservatoires. At graduation, she went to study under Vlado Perlemuter in Paris on the coveted Boise Scholarship. It turned out to be an experience that greatly broadened her mind. "The maestro had a profound influence on me. He taught me the importance of tone colour, and how to translate my feelings and thoughts into sound. It would have been difficult to realise my full potential without his guidance. The seed may have been sown but it needs water to bloom," she muses.
After graduation, Ms Wong spent several years as a touring pianist. Then she got married and settled down in Hong Kong. This was when she joined the Academy. "Teaching brings a completely different kind of satisfaction, as I get to develop close bonds with my students. I have taught some of them from when they were six to their 20s. It's such a thrill to watch them grow!" she remarks. Teaching and learning go hand in hand, and Ms Wong is a teacher and a learner both. When students cannot do something that is required of them, she always tries to identify the underlying reasons. "Why can't they do it? I want to know. The process of trying to understand and helping them overcome the obstacles is interesting and makes me grow as well."
Strict Teacher, Loving Mother
Many of Ms Wong's students are regarded as prodigies. They include Colleen Lee, Rachel Cheung, Aristo Sham, and twin sisters Chau Lok-ping and Lok-ting. As their teacher, Ms Wong enjoys elevated status. What criteria guide her selection of students? "Most important is the sense of rhythm, followed by sharp ears that can distinguish different pitches and dynamic levels of sound," she points out. Rhythm and aural capabilities are inborn, but to become a great pianist, hard work is essential. "Everyone can play the piano nowadays. One can imitate another pianist or even a master simply by watching YouTube videos. To stand out, however, involves more than endlessly refining fingerwork. You need to have a mind of your own. You need to observe, to think, and to feel with your heart. Then you listen, and finally you play. You have to be able to think critically and imaginatively in order to have individuality as a performer or teacher."
Ms Wong's teaching methods vary from student to student, hence communication is of vital importance to her. "When I notice students looking out of sorts, I'll gently persuade them to reveal what's bothering them. They usually open up to me. Some see me as a second mother." In a career spanning over three decades, Ms Wong has built long-lasting relationships with some of her students, enjoying close contact with them long after graduation. In fact her students have set up the "Ms Wong Alumni Association" and celebrate her birthday with her every year.
Life Through Music
Watching the approachable and always beaming Ms Wong, it is hard to be convinced when she reiterates that she cuts a formidable figure in class. She recalls how a male student burst into tears when she reprimanded him. "I have very high standards and I never lower them for students. Among other things, music embodies self-cultivation, artistic values, and attitude. Music is about life. I don't just teach music; I also teach attitude towards life. I hope to enable my students to become better people through music. How do you treat the piano? Do you practise whole-heartedly and sincerely? Are you persistent? Do you respect the composer by being serious and precise about every single note? This is music; this is also life."
Having travelled across the globe to study music, Ms Wong observes that the Academy's uniqueness lies in the diversity of learning activities and the abundance of performance opportunities on offer. "I believe that no institute has as many masterclasses as the Academy. Hong Kong's special background attracts artists from all over the world to come to perform. This exposes students to different masters and allows them to enrich their knowledge with a spectrum of resources," she observes. The Academy also holds over 200 student concerts every year, giving them ample opportunities to perform. "When I was in the UK, I took part in one performance per year at most. Students here are so blessed!"
Becoming Reacquainted with Music
Another acclaimed pianist at the Academy, Professor Gabriel Kwok, began taking piano lessons alongside his cousin as a child. The lessons were routine, as were the practice sessions. And although he acquired the skills, passion was not that strong. In Form 3, he passed the Royal Schools of Music Grade 8 piano exam with flying colours. This earned him a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music after Form 5. Professor Kwok jokes that he decided to go only because he didn't want to see the scholarship go to waste. "The music learning environment in Hong Kong was very different back then. Of 240 students in my secondary school cohort, only two or three took piano lessons. You could only learn privately as there was no specialised school for it. It was in the UK that I discovered my interest in music," he observes.
Opportunities Come to the Prepared
After graduating in 1978, Professor Kwok returned to Hong Kong and became a piano teacher. "When I was a student, I never gave serious thought to my future career. I just felt that teaching piano sounded like a pretty good idea." What was a fleeting thought in his student days turns out to be his career for the next 40 years. "I didn't have big dreams — I just played it by ear. Speaking from experience, I always tell my students that every step in life could lead you in a different direction. Hence we should be the best we can at all times. I'm among the lucky ones who have had quite a few opportunities. We don't get that many in life. We have to keep improving and be ready at every moment to seize any opportunity that may come our way."
Professor Kwok likes to encourage his students by telling the stories of how pianists Lang Lang and Wang Yuja made it. "Both were asked to step in for world renowned masters at the last minute. Both gave an impressive performance that caught attention and opened doors to more opportunities. You have to ensure that you're in top form at all times. It's too late to start practising when opportunity knocks."
A Balanced Attitude to Learning
With Professor Kwok's dry wit, even serious topics like teaching are tinged with humour. "Am I a strict teacher?" He ponders before replying, "It depends on the student. If the student doesn't expect anything of himself or herself, there's no point to be that strict. Some parents urge me to lecture their children. I joke that this would entail a surcharge. Lecturing people is tiring and spoils my mood. Do you agree? I'm not a formidable teacher but I have my expectations."
It is said that the best students have demanding teachers. Professor Kwok recounts an interesting case of a student that he taught for seven years. Throughout this time, he struggled to get a single word out of the young man. Then when it was time for his graduation performance, the student delivered a wonderfully eloquent speech that blew Professor Kwok away. "I was quite demanding of this student, so he rarely spoke in class. But maybe he was a wolf in sheep's clothing. Ha! He graduated some years ago but still visits me from time to time."
Professor Kwok hopes his students can learn to be independent and respectful of their teachers. "Studying entails a certain degree of stress, so you need to find balance to keep your interest alive during the process. Music learning should be fun and enjoyable, rather than something to be suffered through. Of course, there's bound to be pain in hard work. But this should be good pain, not the bad kind. You shouldn't be playing the piano pitifully. Otherwise, you would be overwhelmed by negative emotions the minute you step into the Academy."
Lifetime Commitment to Education
After the interview, Professor Kwok says he is meeting someone. This someone turns out to be the celebrated Paris-based conductor, Lio Kuok-man. A former student of Professor Kwok, Kuok-man was born in Macao and graduated from the Academy with first-class honours in piano performance. His work brings him to Hong Kong every now and then, and every time he is in town, no matter the duration, he will pay Professor Kwok a visit. The bond between the two is clearly strong. "My classes are not easy, but I have great friendships with the graduates. Some schools hold a lot of internal competitions, which create rivalry among the students. This is not the case at the Academy. We have the benefit of a friendly learning environment," Professor Kwok observes.
Having spent half his life on education, Professor Kwok has nurtured a great number of musicians and has come to certain realisations about teaching because of them. "I studied pedagogy in the UK. It was highly theoretical and not necessarily applicable in real-life settings. Students have different characters — some need to be pushed, others need pats on the back. I had a student who worked way too hard. I had to persuade him to take time off from piano to go out and see the world. Everyone is different. This is what fascinates me about teaching," he remarks. Professor Kwok's 36 years at the Academy have gone by in a flash. "It feels like yesterday," he laughs. "It's frightening at times how quickly time passes."
(The article was published in the Feb 2020 issue of Academy News. Click here to read the original story.)
Subscribe to eNews here to receive the monthly e-newsletter and the latest updates at the Academy.