Artistic Director

DAVID CHIN Artistic Director

Photo by Manuel Bärwald

David Chin is the founder and the Artistic Director of Bachfest Malaysia, and the conductor of the award-winning Malaysia Bach Festival Singers and Orchestra, as well as Mendelssohnchor Malaysia. The recent performances of St. Matthew Passion by the Malaysia Bach Festival Singers & Orchestra under David's direction was awarded "Best of 2019" and "Best Choral Ensemble Performance" for the 17th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards. He has also won awards in piano solo, harpsichord concerto, piano concerto, as well as original compositions for chorus and orchestra. David recently produced Encountering Bach, a documentary on the life and music of J. S. Bach filmed at all the Bach landmarks and institutions in Central Germany. He has been appointed to translate the latest Bach's biography by renowned Bach scholar Michael Maul from German into Chinese. David has been named Senior Fellow of Bach-Archiv Leipzig, and assists them in producing a Chinese version of the monumental J.S. Bach database website. He is also currently a committee member of the national Chinese independent high schools in Malaysia, where he serves as a music textbook editor, and provides music training for music teachers throughout the nation.

David served as the Artistic Director of the Hong Kong Bach Festival from 2013-2017, the Artistic Director of East Malaysia Bach Cantata Singers and Orchestra from 2014-2018, the Principal Conductor of the Association of Toronto Chinese Evangelical Church Musicians in Canada from 2015-2019, and the Music Director of the Chinese Choral Society of Rochester from 2011-2014. He was the Assistant Professor of Choral Music at the University of Minnesota, Duluth from 2018-2019, Visiting Artist and Professor in Choral Music at Bucknell University in Spring 2018, and the Director of Choral Activities at Roberts Wesleyan College from 2012-2017. He has also taught at Sunway University in Malaysia.

David conducted the inaugural East Malaysia Bach Cantata Lecture Concert Tour in 2014, and became the first conductor to introduce Bach’s music to major cities throughout East Malaysia (Borneo). He was invited to conduct the inaugural concert of the Eastman School Bach Cantata Series in 2013, and continued to conduct the series season opening concerts for the next three years. He also directed the Bach Cantata Lecture Concert Series organized by A&O Company in Hong Kong and Yin Qi Choir in Malaysia. In addition, David has conducted the Twin Ports Choral Project in Minnesota, Duluth, the collaborative concerts of Madrigalia and Musica Spei in New York, and performances of the Kuala Lumpur City Opera Company in Malaysia. David has prepared choruses for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in multiple concerts. He has been a regular conductor and lecturer at the International Christian Choral Conductor Society since 2012, and was appointed to teach and perform at the World Sacred Music Conferences in New Zealand, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

As a professor, David has led multiple concert tours, directed high school choral festivals, conducted choirs and orchestras of all levels, and taught courses on conducting, voice, music history, music theory, ear-training, and music appreciation. David's conducting students have been admitted to graduate programs at prominent institutions such as the Westminster Choir College, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Eastman School of Music, Georgia State University, University of Tennessee, and University of Connecticut, to name a few.

Known for his enthusiasm for Bach's music, David has conducted multiple performances of Mass in B minor, Magnificat, St. Matthew Passion, and St. John Passion, often leading from the harpsichord, as well as over three dozens of sacred cantatas, several Orchestral Suites, Brandenburg Concertos, and motets. He has also conducted performances of Allegri’s Miserere, Handel's Messiah, Utretch Te Deum & Jubilate, Ode for St. Cecilia's Day, and several Coronation and Chandos Anthems; Vivaldi's Gloria, Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, Haydn's Symphony No. 94 'Surprise', The Creation, Te Deum in C, Theresienmesse, Nelsonmesse, Nicolaimesse, and Kleine Orgelmesse; Mozart's Vesperae solennes de confessore and Missa brevis; Schubert's Mass No. 2 in G, Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2 ‘Lobgesang’ and Hear My Prayer; Brahms' Vier Gesänge, and part songs; Saint-Saëns' Oratorio de Noël, Stravinsky's Mass, Rutter's Gloria, Fauré's Requiem, Poulenc's Mass in G, Finzi's In terra pax, MacMillan's Miserere, and music by Schütz, Tallis, Palestrina, Gabrieli, Albinoni, Hassler, Telemann, Duruflé, Sibelius, Bruckner, Vaughan Williams, Barber, Chilcott, Distler, Thompson, Holst, Finzi, Kodály, Lauridsen, Stopford, Forrest, Runestadt, and other composers, as well as world premieres of several newly commissioned works. David has also conducted multiple performances of the world’s longest running musical: Claude-Michel Schönberg’s Les Misérables, and directed several vocal jazz concerts featuring works by monumental jazz icons such as Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, and others. David was invited to play the harpsichord in recent performances of Bach's Mass in B minor and St. John Passion by the Voices Chamber Choir and Orchestra in New York and the East Malaysia Sacred Music Festival. He has also performed numerous major piano solo works by Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Liszt, and Debussy, and appeared frequently in vocal and instrumental recitals as a collaborative pianist.

Over the years, David had directed numerous choirs and orchestras, and collaborated with outstanding musicians from all around the world. His live performances of J. S. Bach's cantatas and passion have been aired by more than 50 radio stations across the United States, and his original sacred piano arrangements have been broadcast on the International Television Program. He has also been featured on various radio stations and newspapers in Asia, North America, and Europe. As an enthusiastic church musician, David has served Presbyterian, Lutheran, Methodist, Baptist, and Congregational churches around the world. He was a member of the renowned Schola Cantorum at Christ Church in Rochester, New York from 2011-2014, where they perform Gregorian Chant, choral improvisations, motets, and anthems from the Renaissance, Baroque, and the twentieth-century in the weekly Office of Compline. David has been mentored by renowned conductors William Weinert, Helmuth Rilling, Simon Carrington, Ann Howard Jones, Craig Arnold, Bradley Lubman, and Cleusía Gonçalves. His piano coaches included pianist Daisy de Lucca (pupil of Magda Tagliaferro, Fredriech Gulda, Richard Hauser, and Guido Agosti) and David Ehrman; his voice coaches included Raymond Gibbs (former Metropolitan Opera House tenor), Kathryn Cowdrick, and Wayne Kompelien.

David holds both the Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where he was the recipient of the Charles W. Kennett Scholarship and the Herman Genhart Choral Conducting Scholar Award, in addition to full scholarship to pursue both degrees. The graduate programs in conducting at Eastman have repeatedly been ranked by the US News and World Report as the finest in the United States and the world. While at Eastman, David conducted the Eastman Chorale, Eastman Philharmonia, Eastman School Symphony Orchestra, Eastman Repertory Singers, Eastman Bach Ensemble, Eastman-Rochester Chorus, and served as the accompanist of the Eastman Women's Chorus. He was awarded the prestigious Harvey Fellowship by the Mustard Seed Foundation in 2014. David holds Bachelor of Music degree (Magna Cum Laude) in Choral and Piano Performance from Liberty University, and was awarded both "Outstanding Music Student of the Year" and "Outstanding Keyboard Student of the Year" upon graduation. While at Liberty, he conducted the Timothy International Student Chorale and the Liberty Chamber Singers. In addition, he was also the winner of the concerto competition and appeared as a soloist at the Honors Recital. David began his music education at the age of nine, and successfully obtained an associate diploma in piano performance (ATCL) from Trinity College London in 2004. Philippians 4:13.

Website: www.davidchinmusic.com

陳子虔 | 藝術總監

陳子虔是馬來西亞巴赫節的創辦人與藝術總監，也是馬來西亞巴赫慶典合唱與管弦樂團以及馬來西亞孟德爾頌合唱團的指揮。馬來西亞巴赫慶典合唱與管弦樂團在陳氏帶領之下所演出的巴赫《聖馬太受難曲》榮獲第十七屆『寶樂藝術獎』的“2019最佳演出”以及“最佳合唱表演”獎項。陳氏也曾榮獲鋼琴獨奏、鋼琴協奏曲、大鍵琴協奏曲以及原創合唱與管弦樂團等獎項。陳氏近期製作了《追踪巴赫》，一部攝於德國有關巴赫生平與音樂的紀錄片，分別以中英雙語版本推出。他也被邀請為德國著名巴赫學者米凱爾·茂爾博士的新著《巴赫傳》從德文翻譯成中文。德國萊比錫巴赫檔案館於2022年1月正式授予陳子虔博士『資深院士』。此院士授予傑出的學者與音樂家，並作為約翰·瑟巴斯蒂安·巴赫以及萊比錫巴赫檔案館之大使所獲得的榮譽。陳氏將協助巴赫檔案館製作中文版的龐大巴赫檔案網站。他目前也是馬來西亞全國獨立中學音樂科的委員之一，負責協助編寫教科書並為音樂老師們提供訓練。

陳氏從2013-2017年擔任香港巴赫聖樂節的藝術總監，2014-2018年擔任東馬巴赫清唱劇聖歌與管弦樂團的指揮與藝術總監，2015-2019年擔任加拿大多倫多華人聖樂促進會的首席指揮，並於2011-14年擔任羅徹斯特城市華人合唱團的音樂總監。他從2018-2019年擔任美國明尼蘇達大學德魯斯分校的合唱教授，2018年在巴克內爾大學音樂系擔任客座合唱藝術總監與教授，並於2012-2017年擔任美國紐約羅伯茨衛斯理大學音樂系的合唱總監與音樂教授。他也曾於馬來西亞雙溪微大學音樂系任教。

陳氏是東馬巴赫清唱劇聖歌與管弦樂團的創辦人之一，成為首位將巴赫的音樂帶到東馬（婆羅洲）數個主要城市上演的指揮。陳氏於二零一三年被邀在伊斯曼音樂學院巴赫清唱劇系列成立慶典音樂會上指揮，並繼續在接下來的三年指揮該系列每年的開幕音樂會。陳氏多次受邀擔任羅城管弦樂團的合唱總監，並先後獲多個團體邀請擔任指揮與講師：其中包括國際基督教合唱指揮團、世界華人聖樂促進會在紐西蘭、印尼和馬來西亞舉辦的的聖樂大會、紐約羅城巴赫音樂節、馬來西亞福音文化中心、伊斯曼巴赫清唱劇開幕音樂會、紐約Madrigalia 與 Musica Spei合唱團的巡迴音樂會、明尼蘇達與威斯康辛雙州合唱團、吉隆坡城市歌劇社、香港 A & O 公司，以及馬來西亞音契聖樂團。

陳氏在大學任教的職責包括指揮多場校內外的音樂會與合唱節，並執教指揮學、聲樂、音樂歷史、音樂試聽訓練與樂理，以及音樂鑑賞等課程。他的指揮學生前後成功考上美國多間知名大學的碩士與博士課程，其中包括威斯敏斯特合唱學院、辛辛那提大學、伊斯曼音樂學院、格魯吉亞大學、田納西大學，以及康涅狄格大學等。

陳氏對巴赫的音樂尤其熱愛，並於大鍵琴前指揮了多場巴赫的《B小調彌撒曲》、《聖馬太受難曲》、《聖約翰受難曲》以及《尊主頌》，另外還有《第二號管弦樂組曲》、多首布蘭登堡的協奏曲、經文歌以及三十餘首的清唱劇。此外，他也指揮了阿雷格里的《求主憐憫》、韓德爾的《彌賽亞》、《頌聖塞西莉亞》和《烏得勒支感恩贊與歡喜頌》、韋華第的《榮耀頌》、普賽爾的《狄朵與埃涅阿斯》、阿爾比諾尼次的《協奏曲》、海頓的《創世記》、《尼爾遜彌撒曲》、《泰麗莎彌撒曲》、《感恩贊》以及《驚喜交響曲》、舒伯特的《第二彌撒曲》、莫札特的《懺悔者的莊嚴晚禱》及《小彌撒曲》、孟德爾頌的《第二交響樂》與《聽我禱告》、布拉姆斯的《四首嚴肅曲》、聖桑的《聖誕清唱劇》、弗雷之《安魂曲》、斯特拉文思琪的《彌撒曲》、普朗克之《彌撒曲》，以及芬濟的《在世間》等多部合唱與管弦樂作品，另外還有許茨、塔利斯、伯德、加布里埃利、泰勒曼、迪呂佛萊、西貝流士、布魯克納、沃恩威廉斯、巴伯、奇爾科特、霍尔斯特、湯遜、勞里森等作曲家的精選作品，其中也包括多部新作品發表的世界首演。陳氏也被邀請指揮多場聞名世界的音樂劇《悲慘世界》，以及帶領多場爵士合唱團演出艾靈頓公爵和格什溫等爵士大師的作品。陳氏近期也被邀請在紐約Voices合唱與管弦樂團以及東馬聖樂節邀請於巴赫之《B小調彌撒曲》音樂會上彈奏大鍵琴。他也演繹了巴赫、海頓、貝多芬、李斯特、舒伯特、蕭邦以及德布西等作曲家多部的鋼琴獨奏作品，並於多場的聲樂與器樂音樂會上擔任鋼琴伴奏。

陳氏經常被邀擔任許多合唱與管弦樂團的客席指揮，並與世界級的音樂家合作。他所指揮的巴赫清唱劇與受難曲於美國五十餘個古典音樂電台播放，也是美國、歐洲和亞洲電台和報章的常客。他的鋼琴聖樂改編作品也曾在美國的國際電視節目中播放。陳氏亦活躍於教會音樂，事奉足跡遍布亞洲和北美的信義會、長老會、浸信會、衛理公會以及其他基督宗派教會。2011-2014期間, 陳氏是紐約羅切斯特基督教會Schola Cantorum合唱團的成員之一，每週演出文藝復興、巴洛克及二十世紀的頌歌、即興合唱及經文歌等。他從師於世界著名指揮家，其中包括威廉·韋納特、赫爾穆特·里霖、安·霍華德·瓊斯、西門·卡靈頓、克雷格·阿諾德、伯利·立文、以及克洛霞·鏆娋維斯；鋼琴導師包括世界級大師黛西·德·盧卡和大衛·爾文；聲樂導師包括前紐約大都會歌劇院男高音萊門·傑斯、韋恩·康聯以及凯瑟琳·高蒂。

陳氏榮獲世界頂尖音樂學府伊斯曼音樂學院所頒發的博士與碩士學位，並取得查理斯康納獎學金、何曼堅克合唱指揮獎以及伊斯曼的全額獎學金。在校期間擔任多個樂團與合唱團的指揮以及伴奏。他於 2015年獲芥菜種基金頒為哈維榮譽會員。他在2010年畢業於維吉尼亞利博帝大學，主修合唱及鋼琴演奏, 獲得當校音樂系鋼琴演奏最高榮譽學士學位，並榮獲年度傑出音樂學生和鋼琴學生獎項。在校期間，他曾指揮利博帝國際學生合唱團及室內合唱團。此外，他也榮獲2009年利博帝大學鋼琴協奏曲冠軍，在2009年榮譽音樂會及2010年鋼琴演奏會上表演鋼琴獨奏。他九歲開始習琴，2004年於啟蒙恩師馮主恩和李玉玲的領導下順利完成英國三一音樂學院的鋼琴副文憑課程(ATCL)。他的座右銘是腓立比書四章十三節。

官方網站：www.davidchinmusic.com