CHIU Hok-man Elena 趙學文

Pianist-composer Elena Chiu is a highly versatile and vibrant musician. The eminent British composer-pianist Douglas Finch praised her performance as ‘a compelling recital by a real musician’. Her adventurous composition pursuits are honed by performing a diverse repertoire at various international platforms. Highlights of Elena’s recent concert include: having two new commissioned choral works performed at the Hong Kong Oratorio Society’s Christmas concert under the baton of Prof. Chan Wing-Wah in December 2015, and having her commissioned work for piano and live electronics performed the ‘Royal Academy of Music Summer Piano Festival 2015’. Alongside her life as a composer, Elena gave a piano lecture-recital on J. S. Bach’s Keyboard Suites at the 2015 Hong Kong Bach Festival. In 2014, Elena was invited to perform at the ‘John Rutter Festival’ in December at the Dugdale Theatre London, a joint piano and violin recital with Simon Blendis, leader of the Schubert Ensemble, in the London Enfield Choral and Orchestral Festival in May, and a piano recital in Munich at the Korbinian-Aigner Gymnasium’s 10th Anniversary Summer Festival. Elena has become a trainer for young singers as resident pianist-composer, namely at The Children’s International Voices (London) since 2013, where she also works with the patron of choir, John Rutter.

After graduating with Master of Music degree with distinction at the Royal Academy of Music in London, Elena is currently pursuing her doctorate studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong under the supervision of Professor Victor Chan. Elena received funding awards for all her study programmes, including the 2016 Composers and Authors Society Hong Kong Scholarship, King’s College London Hong Kong Foundation Scholarship and the RAM Second-Study Scholarship. During her studies, her Piano Suite won the Christian Carpenter Recital Prize (among post-graduate recitals at RAM) in 2013; her Tango won the Italy (Treviso) International Contemporary Music Competition in 2012, she also received the RAM Foundation Award in the same year. Elena is the winner of the University of London Concerto Competition in 2009.

Elena’s musical craftsmanship is enriched through working with distinguished artists, including Stephen Hough, Michael Finnissy, Freddy Kempf, Yevgeny Sudbin, Vanessa Latarche, Kathryn Stott and Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, amongst others. She has performed at main concert venues including St. Martin-in-the-Fields, St. John Smith Square and the cathedrals of Chichester and Winchester. She also participated in notable music festivals such as the BBC Proms and Aldeburgh Festival. Elena's sacred choral works are published by the Alpha & Omega Company (HK).

活躍樂壇的趙學文是位多才多藝的鋼琴家暨作曲家，憑其全面的技巧和過人創意於國際比賽中屢獲殊榮。曾獲英國著名作曲家暨鋼琴家杜格拉斯‧菲泉稱許為「真正的音樂家」，盛讚其獨奏會「引人入勝」。創作上，趙學文追求大膽創新，而在眾多國際場合演出各種作品的經驗，更令她在創作上精益求精。近期的精彩演出包括：由陳永華教授指揮香港聖樂團演奏的兩首合唱委約作品﹝2015年12月，聖誕音樂會﹞、於講座音樂會解說如何演繹巴赫的鍵盤組曲﹝2015年，香港巴赫音樂節﹞、演出自己一首新撰委約作品﹝為鋼琴與現場電子音樂而寫，「皇家音樂學院夏季鋼琴節2015」﹞、「約翰‧魯特音樂節」﹝2014年12月，倫敦德戴劇院﹞、與舒伯特合奏團小提琴手西門‧布蘭迪斯演出鋼琴與小提琴獨奏會﹝2014年5月，倫敦安菲爾德合唱及管弦樂音樂節2014﹞以及慕尼黑一場音樂會﹝哥比尼安─艾格納學校十周年校慶夏季音樂節2014﹞。趙學文2013年起擔任倫敦國際兒童合唱團駐團作曲家，並參與訓練工作，獲得與該團贊助人約翰魯特合作的機會。

趙學文畢業於英國皇家音樂學院，以優異成績獲頒音樂碩士學位，現於香港中文大學修讀博士課程，師隨陳偉光教授。在學期間，趙學文一直獲頒獎學金， 2016香港作曲家及作詞家聯會奬學金，倫敦國王學院香港基金獎學金以及皇家音樂學院第二學位獎學金。2013年，她在一眾皇家音樂學院研究生的演奏中脫穎而出，憑《鋼琴組曲》贏得克莉斯蒂安‧卡本達獨奏會獎；2012年，她的《探戈》在意大利﹝特雷維索﹞國際當代音樂比賽奪魁，同年又獲頒皇家音樂學院基金會獎。2009年，趙學文贏得倫敦大學協奏曲比賽冠軍。

趙學文曾與多位傑出藝術家合作，包括史提芬‧侯夫、米高‧芬尼斯、弗列迪‧肯普夫、蘇夫格尼‧蘇德賓、維納沙‧拉塔舒、嘉芙蓮‧史托和彼得‧麥斯威爾‧戴維斯爵士等。她也曾在多個重要場地演出，包括聖馬田教堂、聖約翰史密夫廣場、切車斯特大教堂以及溫切斯特大教堂。她的聖樂合唱曲由香港Alpha & Omega公司出版。