Journal

Greetings from Ottawa! Spring is here and the snow is melting.... Here is a video of my performance of Debussy's Danses sacrée et profane, conducted by Professor Chan Wing-wah with the Hong Kong Strings, performed at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall.       Wish you all a happy Easter and lovely springtime!

Apart from harp playing, I enjoy eating and cooking. I always love cooking, because it is a very creative process and it relaxes me a lot. When I was pregnant with Christopher, I started to be more careful and aware of what I eat. And now, being a mother and having to cook for a young baby, I am more cautious with reading nutrient labels when I buy processed food and learnt to buy more naturally grown food. As a result, I feel healthier myself.  I am very grateful that I am able to take a sabbatical this last year and have a restful recovery after childbirth. I am enjoying every single moment of motherhood--even though it can be overwhelming at times--I enjoy watching our family and our son grows every day.     This last month we stayed mostly at home because of the winter season in Canada. Getting tired of my own cooking, I explored some new recipes, and most of all, in Canadian style. I made dishes such as...

Today my son turns 8 months old. Being a new mother, it is so hectic every day that the only time I have for myself in a day usually would be after 8 pm or so, when my baby goes to sleep. I am sure I am not alone here.    [Photo: Me and Christopher (age 4 months) at the harp]     In fact, it is really hard to keep one’s sanity throughout the day, especially if your baby has a cold, is teething, or simply fussy that day. His screaming or yelling can make you panic throughout the day. When I first had Christopher, I used to center a lot around his needs and emotions, which is, now looking back, I think, quite normal. A newborn’s needs during the first three months are especially very demanding as he strives for survival in the new world outside his mother's womb.  His mother or caretaker's undivided attention is almost essential to his healthy being. I often have the feeling that “ If I do not respond im...

American composer John Milton Cage (1912-1993) 's compositional style and philosophy may not be everyone's cup of tea, however, I found his writings in "Silence" very thought-provoking and creative. The book "Silence" talks about Cage's thoughts on music and sound. He believed that silence is as important as music itself, and has a rather enlightening view on space. The book is also visually stimulating as the author arranges his articles randomly. For me, he definitely teaches me one thing: every pause between music notes are as important as the music notes themselves. And if you are a harpist, you would definitely know what I mean, because our dear harp strings are forever vibrating, so it is essential for us to do what we need to do to clean up the sound "mess." ;) The year 2012 is coming to an end soon. I would like to make use of this golden opportunity to pay tribute to Cage. 2012 marks the composer's 100th birt...

Greetings from Canada! Here is a video of my performance of Bach's concerto for 4 harps, collaborating with harpists Skaila Kanga,  Kateřina  Englichová and Claire Jones, performed on October 2011, Hong Kong's Cultural Centre.

As I am resting and counting down the days for my first child, here is a recent photo taken at Chinese University, where I teach, 2 weeks before the big day........ Wish you all a Happy Easter very soon and a very happy spring time! Love from Hong Kong xx