Alton Chung Ming Chan
Encyclopedia
Alton Chung Ming Chan 陳 忠 明 (Born: Hong Kong) Chinese-American-Canadian pianist, pedagogue, choral and orchestral conductor, author, editor, video director and producer.

Biography

Dr. Alton Chung Ming Chan [], a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...

 nominee, has been termed “full of poetic imagination, fiery and uninhibited” by the Hong Kong New Evening Post
New Evening Post
The New Evening Post was a Hong Kong newspaper. It was the evening edition of Ta Kung Pao. It started printing on October 15, 1950 and stopped printing on July 27, 1997.The famous novelist Jinyong was an editor there starting in 1952....

 (新晚報), and he has been called “a pianist of brilliancy, temperament, and poetic sensitivity” by the Hong Kong Standard. After early piano studies with Mrs. Kek-tiang Lim (石聖芳)and graduation from Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Secondary School
Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Secondary School
Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Secondary School is a secondary school in Hong Kong. It was established in 1970 by the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong; Christ the King Church was an affiliated body until 1 September 1999, imbursed by the Government of Hong Kong.The school is situated on Fuk Wing Street,...

 (長沙灣天主教英文中學)in Hong Kong, Chan received much of his higher musical training in the United States where he earned his bachelor’s degree from Texas Lutheran University
Texas Lutheran University
Texas Lutheran University is an undergraduate, private, coeducational university affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The University was founded in 1891, and currently serves approximately 1,400 students each semester....

. Later, he earned his master’s degree in piano performance under Joseph Banowetz
Joseph Banowetz
Joseph Banowetz December 5, 1936, is an American-born pianist, pedagogue, author, and editor, currently teaching at the University of North Texas...

http://www.josephbanowetz.com and a Ph.D. in music education, both from the University of North Texas College of Music
University of North Texas College of Music
The University of North Texas College of Music, based in Denton, is a comprehensive music school with the largest enrollment of any music institution accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music, and the oldest in the world offering a degree in jazz studies...

.

In 1983, Chan made his orchestral debut in Beijing over Chinese National Television and Radio with the People’s Republic of China’s Central Opera Orchestra (中央歌劇交響樂團) http://www.hudong.com/wiki/%E4%B8%AD%E5%A4%AE%E6%AD%8C%E5%89%A7%E9%99%A2. Since then, he has appeared as soloist and recitalist in concert halls in Asia, Russia, Europe and North America. He is also a Mason and Hamlin
Mason and Hamlin
Mason & Hamlin is a piano manufacturer based in Haverhill, Massachusetts.-The nineteenth century:Mason & Hamlin was founded in Boston, Massachusetts in 1854 by Henry Mason, son of Lowell Mason, the American hymn composer and musical educator, and Emmons Hamlin, a mechanic and inventor who had...

 Artist http://www.masonhamlin.com/newsroom/details.aspx?id=36608953. In 1991, Chan received The Young Outstanding Graduate Award http://www.tlu.edu/alumni__friends/tlu_awards_programs/tlu_awards_program_recipients from Texas Lutheran University for his achievements in the performing arts.

A much in demand scholar and expert on American piano pedagogy, Chan has appeared as a guest lecturer and performer at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music
Sichuan Conservatory of Music
Sichuan Conservatory of Music , founded in 1939, is an interdisciplinary higher education institution focused on comprehensive art subjects.-External links:*...

 (四川音樂學院)in Chengdu (成都), Xinghai Conservatory of Music
Xinghai Conservatory of Music
The Xinghai Conservatory of Music is a music conservatory in Guangzhou, China. It was established in 1932 in Guangzhou by the composer Mr.Ma Sicong(Chinese:马思聪先生 Mǎ Sīcōng) as the Guangzhou Conservatory of Music.Both the Xinghai Conservatory of Music and the Xinghai Concert Hall were named after...

 (星海音樂學院) in Guangzhou (廣州), Central Conservatory of Music
Central Conservatory of Music
The Central Conservatory of Music is the national leading music school in Beijing, China.Founded in 1950, the Conservatory offers courses to both Chinese nationals and foreign students, and caters for all levels from primary up to postgraduate programmes...

 (中央音樂學院)in Beijing (北京), and Shenyang Conservatory of Music
Shenyang conservatory of music
Shenyang Conservatory of Music is a music college in Shenyang, Liaoning province, China. Established in 1938, the school serves approximately 8,000 students in undergraduate, graduate, and professional studies.-History:...

 (瀋陽音樂學院), Hong Kong Baptist University
Hong Kong Baptist University
Hong Kong Baptist University is a publicly-funded tertiary institution with a Christian education heritage. It is the sole surviving institution of 13 major Christian universities that once operated on the Chinese mainland,...

 (香港浸會大學), The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (香港演藝學院), Chetham International Summer School and Festival for Pianists http://www.pianosummerschool.com/Faculty=75 at Chetham's School of Music
Chetham's School of Music
Chetham's School of Music , familiarly known as "Chets", is a specialist independent co-educational music school, situated in Manchester city centre, in North West England. It was established in 1969, incorporating Chetham's Hospital School, founded as a charity school by Humphrey Chetham in 1653...

 in Manchester, England, and at numerous piano music teacher associations, festivals and conferences in the United States and Europe.

Recently, he was invited to be the featured speaker for the 2002 annual conference of the Czech Republic’s Chapter of the European Piano Teachers Association. In addition to giving lectures and master classes, as well as premiering the piano transcription of the Adagio of Mahler’s Tenth Symphony by the Scottish composer Ronald Stevenson
Ronald Stevenson
Ronald Stevenson is a British composer, pianist, and writer about music.-Biography:The son of a Scottish father and English mother, Stevenson studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music , studying composition with Richard Hall and piano with Iso Elinson, graduating with distinction...

 at Mahler’s birthplace in Jihlava http://www.region-vysocina.cz/akce/index.php?id=739&akce=detail&sp=0&kal_mes=08&kal_rok=2009, he also performed and lectured in various cities in the Czech Republic http://www.region-vysocina.cz/akce/index.php?id=736&akce=detail&sp=0&kal_mes=08&kal_rok=2009 and Portugal during the summer of 2002.

Currently, Chan serves as the Director of Music Learning Unlimited, a private community music school in the Dallas Metroplex. He is also the Artistic Director of the Dallas Chinese Children’s Choir, and has served three years as the Musical Director for the Dallas Asian American Youth Orchestra http://www.daayo.org/.

Publications and Editions

Chan’s music reviews, articles, and research on piano pedagogy have been published in numerous American, Canadian and Hong Kong educational journals and newspapers. His recent publications for Warner Brothers Publications include a three-volume set of four-hand piano music with accompanying tutorial compact discs by Leopold Godowsky
Leopold Godowsky
Leopold Godowsky was a famed Polish American pianist, composer, and teacher. One of the most highly regarded performers of his time, he became known for his theories concerning the application of relaxed weight and economy of motion in piano playing, principles later propagated by Godowsky's...

 entitled Miniatures, and two volumes of Chinese piano music by the Chinese-Canadian composer An-lun Huang (黃安倫)http://www.hudong.com/wiki/%E9%BB%84%E5%AE%89%E4%BC%A6. In addition, he directed and produced a 2-DVD set on piano pedaling as lectured and demonstrated by Joseph Banowetz http://www.books.com.tw/exep/prod/china/chinafile.php?item=CN10149664.

Recordings

As a recording artist, Chan has made commercial compact discs for Marco Polo, a subsidiary label of Naxos Records
Naxos Records
Naxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...

, one of the largest recording companies in the world, and Warner Brothers. In the 50th Grammy Awards Ceremony, his and Joseph Banowetz
Joseph Banowetz
Joseph Banowetz December 5, 1936, is an American-born pianist, pedagogue, author, and editor, currently teaching at the University of North Texas...

’s four-hand piano recording of Balakirev’s 30 Songs of the Russian People was nominated for the Best Chamber Music Award.

External links

1. Chinese-American International Piano Institute:
  • http://www.caipianoinstitute.org/chan.html


2. Review of A Chinese Festival, Volume 1:
  • http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ObqeK6MaPO4J:findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2493/is_3_52/ai_94932868/+A+Chinese+Festival+Alton+Chan+Review&cd=2&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us


3. Award:
  • http://www.tlu.edu/alumni__friends/tlu_awards_programs/tlu_awards_program_recipients


4. Grammy Nomination:
  • http://classicalmusic.about.com/od/50thannualgmas/a/grammys50th_3.htm


5. Editions:
  • http://www.alfred.com/alfredweb/front/SearchResult.aspx?keywords=alton%20chan

Recordings (external links)

  • http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.223475
  • http://www.toccataclassics.com/cddetail.php?CN=TOCC0018


6. Reviews of Recording:
  • http://www.toccataclassics.com/reviews.php?ID=26&PHPSESSID=3d1ccf296e55888e8c628eec727a5357
  • http://www.mvdaily.com/articles/2007/10/balakirev1.htm
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