An 18-year-old musician, Cannan Wong Hou Wang, told The Macau Post Daily in a recent interview that he performed 10 pieces of his own compositions, which were inspired by his life experiences and science, at the Clube Militar Restaurant in front of 60 people last month.
Cannan said that he started playing the piano when he was three or four years old, adding that he only started composing music four years ago. When asked if he thought that he was gifted in music, he replied that he would not say he’s a great pianist, but said that he found his talent in composition.
According to Cannan’s father, Jason Wong Tai Chao, at first, he wanted Cannan to play the piano so he could play in church. He added he believed that his son has musical talent because he approaches different ways to learn more about music.
Cannan later confessed that he was not born with the love of music, adding that initially he refused to play the piano because he did not find joy in classical music. However, he added, after he explored more music genres online and found his love of jazz, he started to enjoy music more.
When Cannan was in Primary 6, he started to learn the piano with Evonne Lei Vai Fan at Academia de Música São Pio X, adding that Lei was the one who found the musical composition talent in him. Cannan said that two of the pieces that he performed at his concert were pieces he wrote in the composition class he took with Lei.
Graduation concert
The teenage pianist is attending University of Macau (UM) as a first-year science student majoring in Computer Science. He said that the concert was a graduation gift to himself.
Cannan came up with the idea when he saw that one of the students from the same music academy had organised a concert last year, he said, adding that he wanted to do that too. According to Cannan, he approached his parents and music teacher Lei before the COVID-19 pandemic. The two adults were supportive of his decision, and while Cannan focused on his composition, his teacher and father helped him find suitable performers and a venue for his concert, Cannan said.
During last week’s interview at The Macau Post Daily, Cannan admitted that the entire concert was last minute because he only completed all the pieces a month prior to the concert, adding that the entire team only had two weeks to rehearse for the concert.
“I know it was very last minute that is why I was so shocked how complete and well-received the concert turned out to be,” Cannan said smiling through his facemask.
Cannan thanked his parents and his music teacher for helping him to execute his project and handling the finances.
Lei, who helped Cannon connect with the performers, said that she enjoyed lending a helping hand because the entire concert was like “his dream come true”.
Lei, who alongside Cannan and his father attended the interview, pointed out that she could not directly help Cannan with music composition because when he was having a creative block, he needed to break through the barriers himself. However, she added, she could give him advice on music theory, skills, and technique.
“But I think the most important thing I can give is my trust and faith. I have confidence that he could complete the pieces on time and I have faith in his work,” Lei said.
When asked what the challenges were when organising the concert, Lei said that it was performing original compositions.
“Unlike performing classical music that everyone knows, it is harder to grasp the mood and convey the meaning of his work. Therefore, having Cannan conduct the concert was important because he knows his work the best and knows what kind of atmosphere his pieces wanted to create,” Lei said.
Inspiration from life & science
When talking about the inspiration for his music, he said one of the compositions entitled “Asymptote” is referring to a maths concept, pointing out that besides music he also loves science and so combined the two things in his composition.
“In ‘Asymptote’, I tried to use music and science to present my life experience in secondary school. Asymptote is a geometry concept representing two lines gradually getting closer to each other but never meeting, which can also represent two people learning more about one another but can never fully understanding one another. This piece is a violin and piano duet. During the piece two instruments will have vivid clashes, representing the two lines in asymptote,” Cannan said.
Cannan said that most of his compositions were inspired by his life experience, science or even music that he listens to online.
A small city’s peacefulness
Cannan said that he did not choose to major in Music because he would like to keep it as a hobby and pursue a career in computer science in the future. Lei, added that the academy promotes the idea of music learning, without needing every single student to play it professionally.
Cannan said he believed that Macau is a “cultural desert”, which especially lacks music proliferation. He acknowledged that there are local musicians in Macau, but hardly anyone knows about them. He added that he wished more people could appreciate the beauty of music in this small city.
When asked how he would describe local music, he said there was “a sense of peacefulness that is unique to small cities like Macau.”
Cannan said that he composed some pieces during the novel coronavirus pandemic that are less about himself but more about society, adding that he might hold another concert later this year.
This photo provided by Jason Wong taken on August 15 shows Cannan Wong conducting at his concert last month at the Clube Militar Restaurant.
This photo provided by Jason Wong shows Cannan Wong (centre) and 11 musicians who played in his concert posing at the Clube Militar after the event on August 15.
Jason Wong Tai Chao (from left to right), Cannan Wong Hou Wang and Evonne Lei Vai Fan pose for a picture at The Macau Post Daily office last week. Photo Prisca Tang
