Amelia Chan

violinist | Creator, First Principles Violin

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 of fortitude and teeth-gritting willpower that pushes us to do something we do not want to do, “for our own good.” But when I see kids persistently solving a problem of their own accord in their lessons, not wanting to stop even when I suggest they do—that, to me, is clear resilience on display. I think it simply comes from believing that something is truly important. I watch kids who initially had no patience for slow practice, or little ones who would get teary when we stayed on a problem too long, grow into thinking beings who take ownership of and pride in their learning. They develop resilience as human beings. That, to me, is the heart of education.

By the same token, I see kids who do not feel safe enough to simply stay connected to themselves, and I see a direct correlation between that and what might appear to be low ability or intelligence. It’s not that everyone with intellectual intelligence is emotionally healthy; rather, that manifestation of intelligence often comes at the cost of many compensations, their functioning made possible only by hidden suffering. Sometimes the difference isn’t in levels of intelligence, but in capacity. Some kids are already maxed out just trying to survive when they can’t even connect to themselves.

I don’t think resilience in adults is much more complicated. Whether it involves deciding the right thing to do or what to be persistent about, it always goes back to what is important to you. Important in the deepest sense of the self. In the way that kids feel and know, if allowed. In the way that The Little Prince describes “matters of consequence.” Whether it is about personal relationships, love, or morality, it all comes down to exactly that: what is deeply important to you. If you recognize what it means for something to be truly important, and if that inner voice is allowed to flourish and you are encouraged to stay connected to it, you will develop a resilience that serves as a strong anchor in your life.

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