Vera Hui-pin Hsu 許惠品 Conductor/Pianist
Dr. Vera Hui-pin Hsu is a pianist/conductor and the winner of the 2009 International Conductors Workshop and Competition in Georgia, U.S.A. She received Doctor of Musical Arts in piano performance (under the tutelage of Martin Canin) from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York in 2013. She gave recitals and lecture concerts in Germany, Austria, U.S. and Taiwan. In 2015 January, Vera served as Artist in Residence at Haifa University in Israel, during which she also held concerts and masterclasses in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. She toured with Haifa Symphony Orchestra in Israel in 2012. Vera Hsu recorded Sung-jen Hsu’s piano concerto, “Pounding Rain,” as the soloist with Taiwan Philharmonic, and the album was issued by Taiwan’s National CKS Cultural Center in the Voice of Taiwan series.
As a pianist, Vera Hsu engages in a wide range of musical activities beyond solo performances. In the capacity of orchestral pianist and rehearsal pianist, Vera collaborates with Taiwan Philharmonic regularly since 2011, participating in performances of compositions by contemporary composers (including a nationally televised world premiere), and rehearsing Salome, Fidelio, and Verdi’s Requiem, to name a few. Vera Hsu is also an avid chamber music performer. She appeared in chamber music concerts throughout New York City, including Carnegie Hall (Weill Hall). In 2010, she was selected to participate in the chamber music workshop hosted by the National Theater and Concert Hall in Taiwan, and participated in master classes of Lilya Zilberstein and Mikhail Rudy, among others. In 2007, she was invited to perform in the opening gala concert of a serial of chamber concerts held at Taipei Economic and Culture Center in New York. In recent years, Vera Hsu has keen interests in performing music for piano duos, including premiering John Adams’s Hallelujah Junction (with a solo dancer) in Taiwan.
Vera Hsu’s talents as a conductor have led to performances with many different ensembles. She is now the conductor of Crescendo Ensemble Taiwan. Hsu served as the guest assistant conductor of Taiwan Philharmonic in its 2013 Europe tour at Paris, Berlin, Milan, and Geneva, and several subscription concerts in 2014. In 2015, Vera conducted the Conservatory Orchestra at Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance for the world premiere of Sinfonietta, a contemporary Taiwanese composition. She conducted in the opera studio at Taipei National University of the Arts in 2011–2012. She conducted the Macon Symphony Orchestra in its Young People’s concert and collaborated with Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra and Astoria Symphony Orchestra. She also served as Chorus Master at Chelsea Opera, NYC, in 2008, and, from 2001–2005, as music director for the Chi-Yen Symphony Orchestra, the Shin-Lin Chamber Orchestra, the Da-Guan, the Nan-Ping, and the Shih-Pie Youth Orchestras, as well as principal conductor of two other youth orchestras. She conducts standard orchestral repertoire but takes particular pleasure in promoting and featuring new compositions by contemporary Taiwanese composers. From 2001 to 2003, she served as an assistant conductor in the Orchestra of Taipei National University of Arts where she earned her M.A. degree in conducting.
In 2004, Vera Hsu was the sole choice to conduct in Maestro Seiji Ozawa’s master class in Taiwan. While living in New York City, Vera Hsu continued her conducting studies with Adrian Gnam, John Farrer, Daniel Lewis, Donald Thulean, and Neil Thompson in various workshops. She was chosen as a runner-up at 2008 International Conductors’ Workshop.
Vera Hsu was sponsored by the prestigious three-year Taiwan Government Scholarship to pursue her doctoral degree at, where her outstanding achievements have also earned her the CUNY University Fellowship. An enthusiastic chamber player, she pursued her interest in the British composer Frank Bridge by examining the forms of his three chamber works titled “Phantasy” in her dissertation, supervised by Prof. Norman Carey.
Vera Hsu was born in Taipei City, Taiwan and began studying piano at 5 and violin at 6 years old. She currently lives with her family in Taiwan.
美國紐約市立大學鋼琴演奏博士；臺北藝術大學管弦樂指揮碩士、鋼 琴演奏學士。2015 年初，受邀擔任以色列 Haifa 大學音樂系短期駐校音 樂家，並於 Tel Aviv 大學音樂院舉辦鋼琴獨奏會，指揮 Jerusalem 音樂暨 舞蹈學院樂團。2013–2014 樂季擔任國家交響樂團（NSO）於柏林、巴黎、 日內瓦、米蘭、臺北等地，九場樂季音樂會之客席助理指揮。2013 年於 台灣、德國、奧地利舉辦鋼琴獨奏會，並擔任「兩廳院藝術講座宅急配」 講師。2012 年以獨奏家身份受邀與以色列 Haifa Symphony Orchestra 於以 色列演出貝多芬鋼琴協奏曲。2011–2015 樂季於 NSO 樂季音樂會以及多 場講座音樂會中演出，並擔任數場音樂會、歌劇「莎樂美」、「費黛里歐」 製作之鋼琴排練。2011 年以獨奏家身份與指揮家簡文彬、NSO 錄製徐頌 仁教授之「落大雨」鋼琴協奏曲（由中正文化中心於《樂典》系列中發行）。
自幼學習鋼琴、小提琴，畢業於師大附中國中部，並以學術科前三名 成績保送直升師大附中高中部音樂班。鋼琴師事陳泰成、高國香、彭聖錦、 周蓮芬教授；小提琴師事陳秋盛、高安香、李純仁、李麗淑教授。入選國 立台灣交響樂團主辦之「1999 中華民國臺灣區第三屆協奏曲(鋼琴)大賽」 分區決賽。2001 年，入選國家交響樂團「九二一週年紀念巡迴音樂會」 鋼琴獨奏家之決選。
考取教育部「公費留學」三年全額獎學金，於 2005 年秋進入紐約市 立大學（Graduate Center, City University of New York），攻讀鋼琴演奏博 士學位，師從茱莉亞音樂院名師 Martin Canin 教授。2007 年並以優秀在 校成績，獲得校內 University Fellowship 獎學金。博士論文研究 20 世紀 初英國盛極一時的「幻想曲（phantasy）」之時代背景與曲式結構，援用 two‐dimensional sonata form 以及 super sonata 等奏鳴曲式最新研究，深 入分析作曲家 Frank Bridge 早期三首以此為題之室內樂作品。博士論文並 受英國 Frank Bridge 基金會與英國皇家音樂院之支持與協助。
2009 年於紐約市卡內基廳（Carnegie Hall）中懷爾演奏廳（Weill Hall） 演出台灣雙鋼琴作品。旅美期間於紐約市 Elebash Hall、LeFrak Concert Hall、 Levenson Recital Hall 舉辦鋼琴獨奏會與室內樂音樂會; 獲邀於台灣駐紐 約經濟文化辦事處（TECO）午間室內樂音樂會之開幕音樂會演出。2010 年獲選於兩廳院室內樂工作坊接受培訓，接受知名演奏家王健、楊文信、 Lilya Zilberstein、Mikhail Rudy 等指導。 2013 年受邀於「兩廳院室內樂 系列」中演出。
指揮學習由國內名指揮陳秋盛啟蒙；大學時隨張佳韻教授學習指揮； 就讀北藝大碩士班期間，受業於徐頌仁教授。2001 年至 2005 年間，擔任 台大杏林室內樂團、奇岩室內樂團、多所中小學音樂班管弦樂團指揮，多 次帶領樂團巡迴台灣各地及離島演出，並積極協助發表台灣當代音樂作品。 2004 年為指揮大師 Seiji Ozawa（小澤征爾）於台灣舉辦的指揮大師班中， 唯一接受指導之學生。2011 年於北藝大「歌劇表演」課程擔任指揮。2013 年起，擔任 Crescendo Ensemble Taiwan 之指揮。2013–14 樂季受邀擔任 國家交響樂團（NSO）歐洲巡迴音樂會及數場台北音樂會之客席助理指揮。
旅美期間，曾接受 Neil Thomson、John Farrer、Adrain Gnam 等指揮 指導，2008 年獲聘為紐約市 Chelsea Opera 助理指揮與合唱指導。2009 年獲於美國喬治亞洲舉辦之 International Conductors Workshop and Competition 第一名優勝（該比賽之最高獎項），並受邀指揮美國 Macon Symphony Orchestra 演出 Young People’s Concert 系列等音樂會，並曾指 揮 Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra 及 Astoria Symphony Orchestra 等。
源自 http://verahsu.net/
