One of the key highlights in the Conservatory’s calendar this season will be Associate Professor Qin Li-Wei alongside the Conservatory Orchestra and Guest Conductor Yang Yang next Thursday 13 April at the Esplanade Concert Hall. We learn five things you may not have known about Li-Wei. 

1.    HE STARTED LEARNING THE CELLO AS A ‘PRACTICAL JOKE’ TO SURPRISE HIS MOTHER

Li-Wei was born in Shanghai into a family of musicians with his mother as a pianist and father a cellist, later moving to Melbourne, Australia. He first started learning the piano from his mother at the age of four. He recalls of his childhood: “When I was about seven, my mother went on tour for a few months and my father secretly made a cello for me and taught me how to play it. When she came back, he said “Look at him! He can play the cello!” He meant it as a surprise for my mother when she came back.” The rest is history.

2.    30-40 MINUTES ON THE TREADMILL CAN HELP WITH TRAINING FOR ON-STAGE STAMINA

In his free time, he enjoys going to the gym to exercise and listen to concerto recordings while he runs on the treadmill. “I usually run for about 30 to 40 minutes which is just about the same duration as a concerto. In the last kilometre when I’m usually extremely exhausted, I try to work out the bowing and fingering while listening to the concerto. It is really amazing training for your mind especially since you can get very tired while performing during the 3rd and 4th movements.”

3.    LISTENING TO SCHUBERT CAN TRAIN ONE HOW TO BREATHE AND PHRASE

Li-Wei’s latest obsession is the music of Franz Schubert. He says: “Schubert’s Lieder are perfect to learn how to breathe and how to tell a story with music, because of the way he writes for the vocal line.” Li-Wei goes on to share that he would not only recommend Schubert to cellists, but for all instrumentalists to “imitate a singer’s voice in terms of breathing and creating a natural phrase”.