Charles Kwong

SPRING

For the project Hong Kong Solos by Ari Benjamin Meyers that Spring produced for An exposition, not an exhibition (2017), Meyers invited 6 composers to create brief, jewel-like works to be performed live: Shane Aspegren, Steve Hui, Charles Kwong, Lam Lai, Vanissa Law, and GayBird Leung. These solos are then performed by staff members at six arts organizations across the city: Michelle Wong at Asia Art Archive, Samantha Kwok at Hong Kong Arts Centre, Tom Morgan at M+, Olivia Chow at Para Site, Alice Wong at soundpocket, and Chantal Wong at Things that can happen.

Hong Kong composer Charles Kwong’s creative output ranges from orchestral music to works written for all types of ensembles and solo performers. His recent commissioners include soundSCAPE Festival, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Hong Kong New Music Ensemble and Hong Kong Arts Festival, among others. Kwong’s music has been featured in such occasions as the finals of the London Chamber Orchestra’s “LCO New 2008”, the Royal Musical Association Research Conference, York Spring Music Festival, Festival Internacional de Música de Ibiza, Yogyakarta Contemporary Music Festival, World Saxophone Congress, soundSCAPE Festival, Hong Kong Arts Festival, New Vision Arts Festival, Freespace Fest and Modern Academy. In 2016, his work Lachrymae was selected by Matthias Pintscher and Ensemble intercontemporain as part of the programme for the ensemble’s Hong Kong début. Kwong was recently admitted by IRCAM’s ManiFeste Festival and Academy, where he will study with Japanese composer Toshio Hosokawa and have a new work to be workshopped by Orchestre philharmonique de Radio France in this summer.

TypeComposer / Musician

A PART OF
AN EXPOSITION, NOT AN EXHIBITION

An exposition, not an exhibition was developed during Ari Benjamin Meyers’ two residencies at Spring Workshop in the summer and fall of 2016, and stems from his ongoing research into the essence of live musical performance and the questions surrounding its protocols for audiences, performers and institutions.

The Kunsthalle for Music is commissioned by Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art (Rotterdam) together with Spring Workshop (Hong Kong) and will make additional appearances at locations to be announced. An exposition, not an exhibition at Spring Workshop (March 2017) unfolds the Kunsthalle’s foundational themes, and will be followed by a congress at Witte de With (May 2017), then punctuated by an inaugural take-over, featuring a series of new commissions also at Witte de With (January 2018).

www.kunsthalleformusic.org