'When I unexpectedly heard the "Dies Irae" from Verdi's Requiem Verdi had to conduct, I felt how raw and impactful music could be. I knew immediately: I can no longer run away from music.' Elim Chan is moving like a rocket and will make her debut at the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra.
In 2014, Elim Chan (Hong Kong, 1986) was the first female winner of the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition, after which she was assistant conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra for a season. After this, she made her successful debut with Los Angeles Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Orchestre National de Lyon, among others. As of the current season, she is chief of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra.
Dutch connection
She is also well connected in the Netherlands. She has already been on the podium with the Rotterdam Philharmonic and followed master classes with Bernard Haitink. On 17 January she will make her debut with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra in the AVROTROSFriday Concert. She will lead the same programme at the Concertgebouw on 18 and 20 January. Clapper is the Second Percussion Concert by James MacMillan, with Dutch Music Prize winner 2019 Dominique Vleeshouwers as soloist.
Vleeshouwers will receive his prize at the end of the second concert, from the hands of culture minister Ingrid van Engelshoven. Alongside MacMillan's piece, the popular Hebrides by Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony. Elim Chan is now a much sought-after conductor, but she began her career as an amateur musician in Hong Kong. As a teenager, she moved to America to study psychology. That raised questions, which she answered by mail.
Sherlock Holmes.
Why didn't you choose a musical career right away? Did your parents - or you yourself - not see this as a serious possibility?
'I think it was a combination of reasons. In my heart, I definitely did want to pursue a musical career, but I didn't believe in myself enough yet. I simply wasn't convinced I could make it. Moreover, as a young person, I was also very interested in psychology and forensics.'
'I was a big fan of television shows like Crime Scene Investigation and detective and crime stories as Sherlock Holmes. On top of that, my father knew from his own experience how challenging it is to try to make a good living as an artist. Before he retired, he was an art and design teacher.'
Even while studying at Smith College, you were asked to conduct the 'Dies Irae' from Verdi's Requiem. How did that come about?
'I played cello in the student orchestra and also took some conducting lessons with the conductor. At that time, we were studying Verdi's Requiem in for a concert. During the dress rehearsal, he wanted to assess the balance himself in the hall, so he asked me to conduct the Dies Irae.'
'That experience really touched me to the core. I stood in the middle of that huge mass of sound and experienced the power of music. It was the first time I felt how raw and impactful it can be. I knew immediately that I had to start doing this from now on and could no longer run away from music. So I switched to studying conducting - and the rest is history.'
Nerve-wracking but satisfying.
In 2014, you won the London Symphony Orchestra's Donatella Flick conducting competition, which brought you to England. What has this meant for you?
'I am still grateful for the time I was assistant conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) and could work daily with one of the best orchestras in the world. The musicians are impeccable and always give their best in concerts. They are also generous and friendly people. Thanks to their knowledge of the repertoire and their guidance, I have learnt a lot. This is how I have grown as a conductor over the years.'
'Every time I work with the LSO, it demands the utmost from me as an artist. The musicians are lightning fast and perform at a very high level, even though there is little rehearsal time. So I have to be efficient. But in the meantime, I have to draw out all the details in the music and let my imagination run wild. It's incredibly nerve-wracking, exciting but also very satisfying!'
Magician Valery Gergiev.
At the LSO, you worked as an assistant to Valery Gergiev, what is the most important thing you learned from him?
'Gergiev really is a wizard as a conductor, especially with Russian repertoire. I know orchestras are sometimes frustrated and stressed because he is probably one of the busiest conductors in the world. But what he does fantastically is keep every musician literally on the edge of their seat as soon as they get on stage. Because with Gergiev there is always that element of surprise, every time he conducts a piece it sounds completely different from the last time. Also, the way he can bring out colours, textures, drama and tension in music is absolutely unmatched.'
At Gergiev's invitation, you also conducted his own Mariinsky Orchestra. Was this a culture shock or was it 'business as usual'?
'At first, it was indeed a bit of a culture shock, because they were not used to seeing a little Asian lady in front of them. - I think I was the first female conductor to invite Gergiev to conduct his orchestra in concerts and on an international tour. But once I gave the prelude, it gradually became business as usual.'
Conductor of your own life
Since winning the prize in 2014, your career has soared. You are first guest conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and chief of the Antwerp Philharmonic Orchestra. How do you combine all this?
'It is amazing how eager both orchestras are to develop and break new ground. The musicians put their trust in me with remarkable openness and warmth. The two positions still leave me enough time to return to orchestras close to my heart, such as the LSO, Philharmonia and LAPhilharmonic, but also to visit new orchestras. The challenge is to find enough time to study and take rest in between. - "Be the conductor of your own life," is my motto.
Where does your musical heart lie?
'I have conducted a lot of Russian music and have a soft spot for Rachmaninov. His music somehow seems very natural to me, it comes easily to me to interpret it. I like the Symphonic Dances, and his Second Symphony also has a special place in my heart. Another fascinating composer is Stravinsky, as well as Bartók. I love rhythm, and both also write such remarkable and unique colours for orchestra. But I also love contemporary music because I can play an active role in the creation of a new piece. The presence of the composers at rehearsals and concerts makes a big difference and adds a lot of meaning and emotion to the process.'
Technical but emotional
You conduct the NedPho in standard works by Mendelsohn and Tchaikovsky and the Second Percussion Concerto by James MacMillan. Did you already know his music?
'Yes. I have Veni Emmanuel, conducted his first Percussion Concerto, a couple of times and conducted the US premiere of his Fourth Symphony. His music is quite challenging both physically and technically as MacMillan writes quite virtuosic music for his performers. But it is always very satisfying to play through his music. If you listen to how everything fits together, the textures, the colours, the deeply religious undertones: it's very emotional and has a powerful rhetoric on all fronts.'
What are the pitfalls for you as a conductor in his Second Percussion Concerto?
'I find it a great and fun challenge to accompany a percussionist as a conductor. - We are both very physical. At all times, we have to be in sync and communicate very precisely with each other to make the concert work. Furthermore, finding the right balance between all the intricate and delicate parts MacMillan writes for the orchestra and the solo percussion is extremely difficult.'
'What I like best is how MacMillan lets the "metallic" timbres shine. Not only in the solo and orchestral percussion but also in the brass.'
On 18+20 January, I will provide the introductions at the Concertgebouw; in 2014, I spoke to MacMillan prior to the world premiere in the AVROTROS Friday Concert.
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