From Poetry to Performance: How Anna Vienna Ho Brings Li Bai to Life in Music
- WOMCO
- Apr 28
- 3 min read
Anna Vienna Ho was a Master Prize & Exceptional Creativity Special Prize Winner in the Original Composition Category, at the 2025 Season 2 Jean-Philippe Rameau International Music Competition
Biography
Anna Vienna Ho is a versatile musician who is concert pianist, répétiteur, composer, singer and conductor rolled into one. She has worked with the Welsh National Opera, Birmingham Opera Company, Tête à Tête: The Opera Festival and Opera Novella. She has been selected as a Du Vert a L'infini festival Artist, Syntropy Artist, RMN Classical Artist and the Montpelier Arts Center Classical Recital Artist. Anna gained an Advanced Postgraduate Diploma and a Master of Music in Piano Performance with distinction from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.
Anna's compositions include instrumental, vocal, electroacoustic, multi-media and operatic works, which were premiered around the world by various musicians. She has collaborated and was commissioned by many organizations, including the New Generation 2014("The Forester", for String Quartet), London Oriana Choir("The Infinite Shining Heavens" for SATB choir), Birmingham Opera Company("It Gets Lighter From Here" digital project), Animal Hope Varna(promotion videos), David Bohn's Twenty Seconds of 2020 project("Chase", for solo Clavietta), Fifteen Minutes of Fame project("Fedora", for solo bass flute), Tête à Tête Opera Festival("Buddha and the Monkey King", "The Monk of the River"&"The Monster of Gao Village"), Musica del Cuore("Li Bai's Four Seasons", for solo piano), "Our Music Talent" series("Li Bai's Wine and the Moon", art song), Du Vert a L'infini festival("Sea Creatures in our Minds and Hearts", audio-video), K622 Clarinet Ensembles("Inevitable"), among others. Her compositions were included in albums, including Cities and Memory "Polar Sounds"("The Codes"), RMN "Modern Music for Piano"("Images" ) and "In Focus4"("Medusa"). Last year, her sound art "Dynamic Zero" was broadcast worldwide on Radio Luxembourg's Radio Arts District and the Chijana International Festival, Radiophrenia Glagrow respectively, and has been selected to be exhibited in “Containment” Exhibition in Hong Kong and LCB Depot’s Sound 2023 in Leicester, UK.
Could you share the inspiration behind this work and the message you hope to convey through it?
I have a strong interest in Chinese poetry and often draw inspiration from it for my artistic endeavors. "On Drinking Wine" is a Cantonese Art Song composed based on the poem by the Tang dynasty poet Li Bai. I particularly like Li Bai's poem that describes the moon and wine. These two recurring motifs in his work symbolize transcendence, nostalgia, and the pursuit of beauty.
The poem expresses a spirit of camaraderie and celebration, urging friends to enjoy life and drink wine together. It reflects on the fleeting nature of life and the importance of seizing the moment. Li Bai emphasizes the joy of friendship and the beauty of living in the present, often with a touch of melancholic awareness of life's transience. Li Bai often expresses his passion for wine, believing that it not only brings joy but also alleviates life's troubles and loneliness, helping him forget the sorrow arising from political disappointment.
What was your creative process like while composing this work? How did you approach the structure and dynamics of the piece?
Cantonese is a tonal language with a total of nine tones. Each tone has a distinct pitch contour, ranging from high and steady to low and falling, which can completely alter the meaning of a word. Composing a melody that respects these tones while also being musically appealing is complex. A melody that does not align with the tonal structure can change the intended meaning of the lyrics.
This intricate tonal system requires musicians to carefully consider how melodies interact with the words, ensuring that the emotional and contextual nuances of the language are preserved. Understanding these tones is essential for creating music that truly reflects the essence of Cantonese poetry and speech.
The music begins with an attention-grabbing announcement, creating an atmosphere of anticipation and excitement. As it unfolds, a vibrant celebration gradually emerges, filled with joy and togetherness, with the beauty of life and shared moments taking center stage. In the final phrases, a sense of relief quietly washes over, reflecting on the passage of time and embracing the fleeting joys of life.
