Festival Artists

Yat Po Singers is the first professional a cappella choral theatre company in Hong Kong focusing on developing original theatrical works. Three Co-Artistic Directors, composer Ng Cheuk Yin, choral director Patrick Chiu and stage director/designer Yuri Ng, formed a solid team and founded the Company with Executive Director (Honorary) Kathleen Ng. The Company’s artistic mission is to promote the a cappella art form in Hong Kong, especially among young people, through original work by local artists that demonstrate the innovative interaction of music and theatre.

Kay Tse On-kei is a Hong Kong Cantopop songwriter, recording-artist, entertainer, and one of the premier Cantonese singers. Raised In Hong Kong. Tse made her debut to the music industry and was signed with Ban Ban Music in 2005 and released her debut album. She became a prominent figure in the Canto-pop culture. She is known for her versatile vocal range and expertise in various music genres, especially in jazz.

She first achieved mainstream success in 2008 with the song “Wedding Invitation Street”, topping in the four major charts of Hong Kong. Due to the hugely successful and the critically acclaimed album Binary, Tse won many awards in January 2009 including “Media Award – Album” for Binary and “Media Award – Performer”, which are considered to be the most prestigious awards in Hong Kong music industry. In early 2009, she released her sixth studio album, Yelling and features the hit single “Song of The Year”. Tse embarked on her first headlining tour, Yelling LIVE 2009 and the album subsequently became the ninth best selling album of 2009. In November 2010, she released her debut Mandarin album, My Second Home that features the number one single “Weakness”. Media praised her as “Grass-Root Queen”, increasing her influence in the Hong Kong music industry. Along with Joey Yung, Miriam Yeung, Denise Ho, Tse is currently considered as the four premier female Canto-pop performers. She married Hong Kong recording-artist Louis Cheung on January 20, 2007 and gave birth to her son in June 16, 2007.

In her international career spanning nearly four decades, cellist Myung-Wha Chung has established herself as a consummate artist of extraordinary musicality. Ms. Chung has repeatedly appeared as soloist with leading orchestras and in recitals in Europe, North and South America, Asia and her native Korea.
She has been a featured performer in many festivals including Lucerne, Maggio Musicale of Florence, Spoleto, and Dijon. She has performed at the White House and the United Nations and appeared on nationally televised programs in the United States, Europe and Korea.

In addition to her concert performances, Ms. Chung teaches at the Korean National Institute of Arts in Seoul and serves as Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF in Korea and also a special envoy for the City of Seoul.

Principal Clarinetist of the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Andrew Simon’s international career was launched by his critically acclaimed Carnegie Hall debut. The first American-born artist ever to perform in North Korea (1992), career highlights include over 60 solo performances with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, appearances in 23 Japanese cities, continental premieres of the original version of Copland’s concerto in Australia and Asia, and his Singapore Symphony debut performing Mozart’s concerto in its original version on basset clarinet.

Recording projects include his recital CDs”HOT”(Musicians Showcase) and”Ebony and Ivory”(NAXOS Records). As guest lecturer, the Juilliard graduate frequents institutions such as Yale University, the Sydney Conservatorium, the Royal College of Music in London, and the Central Conservatory in Beijing.

Jeff Lehmberg has been a member of the Hong Kong Philharmonic since 2007. Before that, he served as Principal Bass of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Assistant Principal Bass of the Allentown Symphony in Allentown, Pennsylvania, as well as Section Bass of the Binghamton Philharmonic in Binghamton, New York.

Jeff attended the Juilliard School, where he studied with Homer Mensch. He later returned to New York for graduate school at the Mannes College of Music, studying with Homer Mensch and then with Marji Danilow.

While in LA he served as the house bassist for the jam session at the World Stage, founded by the legendary drummer Billy Higgins. He was also the bassist in the Bobby Dupree Combo as well other rock and jazz ensembles.

Mark Peter is a dynamic and versatile musician whose roots are in Jazz and Rhythm & Blues. A graduate of Humber College in Toronto, Mark’s strengths, in addition to live and studio performances, include writing and arranging as well as being keyboardist for acts like Bobby Taylor (Motown Records), The Temptations and The Supremes, to name a few.

Pianist Michelle Kim has captivated audiences all over the world for her unique blend of pianistic power, poetry and striking stage presence. Ms. Kim has performed in concert halls throughout the US, Europe and Asia including performances at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Caramoor, the New Jersey Performing Art Center, the Sejong Cultural Center, the Hong Kong Cultural Center, LACMA and the Chicago Cultural Center. She has performed as a soloist with numerous orchestras across the world including the New Jersey Symphony, the Brevard Music Festival Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic, the Xiamen Philharmonic, the Bergen Philharmonic, the Orchestra del Teatro Massimo di Catania, among many others. Her performances have been televised in United States, Italy and South Korea and broadcast on radio stations throughout the US including NPR, WQXR, K-Mozart and WFMT.

Recently, Michelle Kim was featured as one of the “Inspiring Women of Hong Kong” in the October 2013 Anniversary Issue of Marie Claire for her charity work in Hong Kong. Ms. Kim is the founder and artistic director of Hong Kong Generation Next Arts (HKGNA), a Hong Kong Charity dedicated to nurturing artistic excellence and personal success in young artists and transforming lives through music. She has performed numerous concerts to raise money for Hong Kong Charities including performances with violinist Lu Siqing and the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and” Concert of Power” event with Nick Vujicic.

Born in Seoul Korea, Ms. Kim began her musical studies at age four. At age ten, she gave her orchestral debut with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra. She went on to graduate from The Juilliard School earning both a Bachelors and Masters of Music. She was also the recipient of the prestigious Arthur Rubinstein Award and garnered top prizes in national and international competitions including the Bartok-Kabalevsky-Prokofiev International Piano Competition and the Vincenzo Bellini International Piano Competition.

Hailed by the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch as “frequently brilliant” and the New Jersey Star-Ledger as “smashing”, Principal Trumpeter Joshua MacCluer is a versatile and accomplished musician who is in demand worldwide in many styles as a trumpeter, composer, arranger, record producer and educator.

As an orchestral musician, he previously held positions with the Saint Louis Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Colorado Symphony, the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra and the Sarasota Symphony. He has appeared as a guest principal with many of the world’s finest orchestras, including the San Francisco Symphony, Singapore Symphony, Malaysian Philharmonic and the National Taiwan Symphony.

Joshua is also an accomplished jazz, rock, studio and Latin musician and has performed extensively in the Americas, Europe and Asia in many styles.

Leung Kin Fung was the awardee of the “Ten Outstanding Young Persons” in Hong Kong in 2002. Leung was the first Hong Kong musician to win the first prize at the “1992 Young Artist Competition” in New York while studying there on full scholarship at the Juilliard School as the winner of the “Irving Ruckens Award”. He also had previously won a significant award for his virtuosity on the viola, the second prize at “The 19th William Primrose International Viola Competition” in 1991. He was listed in the “Who’s Who in the HKSAR” published by Sing Tao Publishing Ltd in 2004. He was commended for making outstanding achievements in the promotion of arts and culture, under the Secretary for Home Affairs’ Commendation Scheme 2005, Hong Kong. Since 2000, Leung has been the First Associate Concertmaster of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, also acted as the Artistic Director of Macao Virtuosi and Hong Kong Pure Strings.

Violinist Chee-Yun’s flawless technique, dazzling tone and compelling artistry have enraptured audiences on five continents. Charming, charismatic and deeply passionate about her art, Chee-Yun continues to carve a unique place for herself in the ever-evolving world of classical music. Winner of the 1989 Young Concert Artists International Auditions and the 1990 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Chee-Yun performs regularly with the world’s foremost orchestras including New York Philharmonic and Philadelphia Orchestra just name a few. In Fall 2009, she also appeared in an episode of HBO’s hit series, “Curb Your Enthusiasm. Chee-Yun plays the Stradivarius “Ex-Strauss” (Cremona, 1708), which is on loan through the generous efforts of the Samsung Foundation of Culture of Korea and the Stradivari Society of Chicago, Illinois.

Ng Cheuk-yin is Hong Kong Sinfonietta’s first Artist Associate, music director of the fusion group SIU2 and the co-artistic director of the a cappella theatre company Yat Po Singers. After receiving a post-graduate degree from the Music Department of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, he went on to study Japanese at the International Christian University in Tokyo and Jazz Music at Codarts in the Netherlands. In 2012, Yin received Award for Best Artist from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council.