Prof. Chan was the first Resident Composer of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and has written 10 symphonies plus over 200 musical works. even of his ten Symphonies were published on CD by Hugo Productions performed by orchestras in Hong Kong and Russia.
He has received numerous awards including the First Prize in the International Double Reed Society Composition Contest, USA, the Yoshiro Irino Memorial Award from the Asian Composers League and several local awards. His works had been performed in over 30 countries. His biography is included in the
New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians Online.
As a conductor, Prof. Chan is the Music Director of the Hong Kong Oratorio Society (established in 1956) since 1995 and has been leading this choir with regular concerts and occasional concert tours to perform oratorios and other sacred masterpieces. In 2017 he brought the choir and orchestra to perform his
Symphony No.8: This Boundless Land, for Chorus, Organ and Orchestra, in the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles with great success. In 2019 he brought the choir together with the Vancouver Oratorio Society to Toronto to premiere his
Symphony No.9: Universal Harmony. He had also conducted orchestras and ensembles in Japan, Korea, Macau and Mainland China. The Hong Kong Government appointed him Justice of the Peace in 2000. He was invited to become a Council member of the Chinese Musicians Association in 2009.
He received his BA in music from the Chinese University of Hong Kong studying composition with Professor David Gwilt. He went on to finish his Master and Doctor of Music degrees from the University of Toronto on a Canadian Commonwealth Scholarship studying with Professor John Beckwith. Prof. Chan had been Professor of Music, Associate Dean of Arts, Chairman of the Music Dept. at CUHK. He had also served as Deputy Director of HKU SPACE. He is now Associate Dean of the CUHK (Shenzhen) School of Music, Chairman of the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong, Music Director of the Hong Kong Oratorio Society, Chairman of the HK Association of Choral Societies, Council member of the Hong Kong Children’s Choir, and Adjunct Professor at CUHK. He also serves in numerous groups including the China Musicians Association, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Hong Kong Dance Company, New Tune Chinese Orchestra and Windpipe Chinese Music Ensemble etc.
Prof. Chan's music builds upon the Chinese cultural root. His
Symphony No. 8: This Boundless Land and
Symphony No. 9: Universal Harmony are typical examples. Some of his other works were inspired by Chinese historical account and current development. They include
Symphony No.5: Great Wall,
Symphony No. 6: Reunification and
Symphony No. 10: Spring and Autumn referring to the Period of Spring and Autumn preceding the Warring States.
