Media

Fundraising for the Faculty of Dentistry, HKU - Wenyu Shen and the Hong Kong Children's Symphony Orchestra

09 Oct 2008

A fundraising concert for the Faculty of Dentistry of the University of Hong Kong featuring Wenyu Shen, one of the most legendary young pianists from China, and the Hong Kong Children's Symphony Orchestra, the young cultural ambassadors of Hong Kong founded by veteran music educator Dr Yip Wai Hong, will be held at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall on 16 October (Thursday), 8pm. This musical evening is sponsored by Sino Group. Proceeds from the concert will be donated to the Faculty of Dentistry after the deduction of necessary expenses.

"We are much honoured and most grateful that the fundraising concert is sponsored by the Sino Group, a fourth time title sponsor, as well as Tom Lee Music Co. Ltd. and Island Pacific Hotel, and presented by the Tom Lee Music Foundation, which has presented two previous fundraising concerts.  Their support has been most helpful to our continued efforts to provide top quality dental services to the people of Hong Kong over the years," said Professor Lakshman Samaranayake, Dean of the Faculty.

Hailed by Prof. Hauer from Karlsruhe Conservatory of Music that "Wenyu's talent is of a rarest quality and is likely to take him to the summits of international piano world," Shen has gone on to win major prizes in various competitions including 2^nd prize in the 2003 Queen Elizabeth International Piano Competition as the youngest ever prize winner at the age of 16, 1st prize at the Rachmaninov International Piano Competition and 2^nd prize in Hong Kong International Piano Competition in 2005, amongst others.

Shen studied at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music at 7, moved to Germany at the age of 11 and studied at the Hannover Conservatory of Music and Drama under Prof. Kammerling from 2001 to 2005. He has an exceptionally wide repertoire for solo and concerto works and has collaborated with major orchestras including Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra (in the 2007 Hong Kong Arts Festival), China National Symphony, Hampleton Symphony in South Africa and Macao Orchestra, among others.  He performed and recorded Chopin Piano Concerto No. 1 and the Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Symphony Orchestra of Kalisz Philharmonic from Poland at the age of 14 and recorded a solo CD on Cyprès label at the age of 17, which Music Web commended to be "a very fine, and in many ways remarkable disc." In 2008, Shen furthered his studies with internationally renowned Chinese pianist Liu Shikun and released a new CD on Chinese folk melodies named "Chinese Sights and Sounds".

The concert programme features Rachmaninov's Piano Sonata No. 2, Op.36, four solo piano pieces based on Chinese folk tunes including A Hundred Birds Paying Respect to the Phoenix, Music at Sunset,  and Pulling Out a Reed Catkin and Going to Watch Yangge Dance from Chinese Sights and Sounds, and Beethovan's Piano Concerto No.5 "Emperor" conducted by Dr Yip Wai Hong.  Tickets are now available at URBTIX outlets; reservation at: 2734 9009.

For Enquiry, please contact: Ms Melody Tang, Communications and Development Officer, Faculty of Dentistry, HKU (Tel: 2859 0210 / Fax: 2517 0544 / Email：meltang@hkucc.hku.hk)