Lok-yan’s story: Flourishing under the care and mentorship of CCA teachers

Everyone has a story to tell about their university life. For Tsang Lok-yan, her story is about how her musical talents blossomed under the care and advice of her professors throughout her years at FLASS, and how she developed a strong conviction to influence the next generation through musical education.

Early in her life, Lok-yan had already made up her mind about her future. She told her mother when she was a six-year-old primary student that she wanted to study music when she grew up. She followed her heart and enrolled in the Bachelor of Music in Education (Honours) (Contemporary Music and Performance Pedagogy) (BME) programme at the Department of Cultural and Creative Arts (CCA) in 2014. After four years of hard but unforgettable studies at EdUHK, Lok-yan graduated with distinction in 2018.

Lok-yan was delighted to prove that the decision she had made in her childhood was the right one. In fact, her four years of studying for the BME programme was filled with advancements in knowledge, exciting performances and, above all, incredible growth from being cared for and nurtured thoroughly. Among her many memorable musical and educational experiences, she particularly highlighted how her professors at CCA tailored their approach for each student to bring out their very best.

“Teachers of the BME programme recognised that there are differences among students in terms of their musical backgrounds, dispositions and interests. They emboldened us to participate in different activities that match our strengths and temperaments. At CCA, we received numerous opportunities to join all kinds of musical ensembles and orchestras, organise concerts, compose and appreciate music, and take part in publicity and backstage management,” she recalled.

Lok-yan also endorses the innovative spirit of the department, which mixes old traditions with new ideas. “At CCA, students learnt from traditional music lessons on subjects like the history of western music and music in western civilisation. However, we were also taught to make use of modern digital technology to compose and perform music,” she said.

Lok-yan is drawn to composing music. Although BME did not offer formal classes on musical composition, she took the initiative to ask Dr Michael Leung Chi-hin, an Assistant Professor of CCA, to comment on her composed works. Dr Leung’s opinions greatly helped improve her work. With his encouragement, Lok-yan submitted her musical creations to various competitions and saw success with many of them.

“One of my works won the Third Prize in the New Generation 2016 contest organised by Hong Kong Composers’ Guild Limited in association with Radio 4 of the Radio Television Hong Kong, sponsored by The Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong (CASH). This was especially memorable as it was the first time I won in a public competition,” the young musician said.

Lok-yan takes a photo with one of the musicians after attending the Tennessee Valley Music Festival in 2017.

The first taste of accomplishment motivated her to keep submitting works. In her third year of university studies, Lok-yan sent her orchestral piece Ballade “Purple”, which was premiered by the EdUHK Orchestra, to the Tennessee Valley Music Festival 2017. “I was thrilled to hear that the organiser had selected my work to be played in the festival. I was even more excited when I learnt that EdUHK would financially sponsor me to go to the US to attend the festival! It is such a gorgeous experience to hear your own work played by a full orchestra. The experience was truly eye-opening,” she recollected fondly. 

In the final year of her studies, Lok-yan continued to create beautiful music. Her work “Dorian Dance” for chamber orchestra was performed in the Washington and Lee University Chamber Orchestra Composition Contest 2018 after winning the undergraduate category of the contest. Her other original composition “The Lord Will Send His Mercy” was included in The Hong Kong Children’s Choir 50th Anniversary Children’s Choral Composition Selections held in 2018.

With her passion and spirited outlook, Lok-yan began going places. She was asked by various bodies in the industry to write music. Her commissioned work “Beyond the Red Bricks” was performed by cello and yangqin in Musicus Society Heritage Community Concert 2018. In the same year, she composed “The Song of a Visitor on Youzhou Tower”, a musical interpretation of a classical Chinese poem, for the Hong Kong Composers’ Guild Chinese Poems Project.

Behind these acclaims stand the meticulous care and mentorship provided by her CCA teachers. Lok-yan was very impressed by the caring spirit of CCA, where teachers paid close attention to understand the different characteristics of each student and were patient in helping them develop their strengths. “My growth as a musician was accelerated through the years of attending classes, joining different musical ensembles, organising events, and being nurtured at CCA. I learnt from my teachers how to teach music too,” Lok-yan said with gratitude.

Besides improving her musical knowledge, making achievements and acquiring teaching skills, Lok-yan found the community spirit at CCA rewarding. “There were many musical performances held by CCA students at EdUHK. I needed to listen to other students playing my musical works at the rehearsal. Through these performances and rehearsals, I got feedback for improving my composition. I also learnt a lot about how to cooperate with other people,” she said.

Lok-yan has many experiences of such community ethos. A small-scale school concert organised by Lok-yan and her classmates in her final year was particularly memorable. While her classmates filmed a video for the concert, Lok-yan was in charge of composing and playing the piano part of the music as other classmates played other instruments on the stage. Other students oversaw the audio-visual effects and lighting. “In the end, it became a multi-media production in which every one of us had a part to play,” she said.

After graduation from EdUHK, Lok-yan pursued a master’s degree at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (2018-2020). To equip herself for the teaching profession, she came back to EdUHK to complete a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (Primary) in 2021. After that, she began teaching music and the Chinese language at a local primary school.

She is very grateful to CCA for all the things she learnt there. “The musical knowledge and pedagogy I learnt are very useful in my present job. I think it is important to instill in your students an interest in music,” she said. “Teaching is not only about passing musical knowledge uniformly to students; it is more about noticing their individuality, so I can tailor my care specially to meet their needs. This is my most important takeaway from my CCA education.”

On 4 June this year, her orchestral work "Waterscape" was premiered by The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (or HK Phil) under the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Hong Kong Composers Scheme. It had been a while since Lok-yan had been in the eyes of the public. The HK Phil’s playing of her work reminded her of how much she has obtained from CCA, bringing back a flood of cherished memories from her BME studies. With all the care and enlightenment she has experienced at CCA, Lok-yan knows she will be able to thrive in her teaching career.

Click here to watch HK Phil’s playing of "Waterscape".