Cover Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
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Here’s how Enoch Wong, the conductor of The Harmonics Choir Hong Kong, brings together the city through his Christmas concert that spreads the message of love and diversity.
Enoch Wong is the conductor of The Harmonics Choir Hong Kong (The Harmonics), the city’s first and largest LGBTQ community choir. Since its establishment in 2015, The Harmonics has been bringing together members of the community and allies, bonded by a common love of music. They perform both onstage and in less conventional spaces such as streets, bridges, bars, offices, churches and beaches, to spread the message of love, acceptance and hope.
Read more: Stories of Allyship and Equality in the LGBTQ Community in Hong Kong
Wong worked with multiple choirs in Canada before returning to Hong Kong, where he has since collaborated with Grammy Award-winning vocal coach Ashley Ingram, and Paul Phoenix, a former member of the British a cappella vocal ensemble named after King’s College in Cambridge, where the ensemble was originally formed. Wong is also a freelance choral teacher for secondary schools.
The Harmonics will perform Love Endures, a Christmas concert, on December 15, 2021. We asked Wong to share a typical day in his life as a conductor.
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Above Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
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7.30am
I’ve always been an early bird and have never needed an alarm clock. I usually wake up with music playing in my head. Sometimes it’s a catchy, newly released song; at other it’s songs from our choral repertoire. There are times when I dream of original compositions, but I forget them when I wake up.
8am
After breakfast, I start preparing for the day’s rehearsals. My work varies from researching and choosing songs, planning a whole year’s repertoire and seasonal concerts, and teaching songs, to meeting colleagues to discuss how the choir can improve.
Above Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
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Noon
I enjoy buying food from local eateries and small businesses which put extra effort into both the craft of their food and their customer service. I also love it when, occasionally, the servers or owners start to recognise me and we develop a friendship.
I try not to listen to music when I’m eating because it becomes work, and I start to go deep into analysing and appreciating the harmonies.
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2pm
School rehearsals usually take place in the afternoon. When a rehearsal begins, my singers are expected to stand in a good singing posture and ready their vocal muscles for breathwork. The warm-up is the most important part of each rehearsal as it protects our vocal muscles from the physical strain of singing for hours straight. During warm-up exercises, I modify the exercises according to how my choir progresses.
There’s an old saying that music connects people, but making music that creates connections is not magic. It requires hard work. It takes trial and error to guide the choir to a harmonious sound. But during the process, members will gain life skills such as accepting themselves for who they are and supporting one another with kindness.
Above Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
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6pm
On weekends we may have many afternoon or evening performances. They can be outdoor events, school performances, competitions, internal corporate events, or charity events.
It is crucial for me as a conductor to be aware of the acoustic environment of each performance venue. When I’m scouting locations, I need to check for the optimal acoustic environment which will allow the chorists’ voices to be projected, and the audience to enjoy the performance.
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Above Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
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7.30pm
With community choirs such as the Harmonics, everyone comes to rehearsal after work or school, and we end at 10pm. More than 50 members of The Harmonics attend evening rehearsal every week, and even at the end of the two-and-a-half-hour rehearsals, some stick around in high spirits to mingle or keep on singing casually. To a conductor, this rapport created through a love of music is powerful and, I dare say, magical.
Above Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
Courtesy of Enoch Wong.
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11pm
I love to spend social downtime with my friends playing board games, often right after rehearsals. I regularly go to physiotherapy, acupunctures, massages and a chiropractor regularly to ease my chronic muscle pain. My the chronic muscle pain may be a hurdle in any line of work, let alone conducting, as I cannot stay in one position for an extended amount of time without suffering, which, to say the least, affects my sleeping quality. But my passion for choral music and the magical moments our singers produce at each rehearsal and performance keep me going.
‘A Day In The Life’ is a Tatler weekly cultural series, which delves into lives of the tastemakers in Hong Kong’s arts scene
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Zabrina is the Senior Editor, Arts and Culture of Tatler Hong Kong. She specialises in performing arts, visual art and film. Her wanderlust was first fuelled by the Mighty Rovers Antarctica Expedition 2010. Over the years, she has interviewed A-list artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winners Chlóe Zhao and Tim Yip, Golden Horse winner Sylvia Chang, In the Mood for Love cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Pachinko author Min Jin Lee, and Coachella’s first Chinese solo singer Jackson Wang. She won gold at the WAN-IFRA Asian Media Awards for her 2021 feature on the waves of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.
