Vincent Ho
A love of both the movie Amadeus and Lego drew Vincent Ho to music composition at age 14.
When the now 44-year-old saw the movie about the life of classical composer Mozart, “I was enthralled. It was magic — what you could do with the creation of music.”
Amadeus (which he has seen more than 50 times) and his love of putting Lego pieces together as a child encapsulates Ho’s success in building multi-award-winning compositions.
Now artistic director of Land’s End Ensemble and musical adviser for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Ho has already twice been nominated for a Juno (for his five-movement Arctic Symphony and for The Shaman).
While describing the 2018 nods as “icing on the cake” — helping expand classical music to younger demographics — 2020 will celebrate his roots.
In March, his Rejuvenation: A Taoist Journey will be performed at Beijing’s National Centre for Performing Arts by its national orchestra.
In April, The Shaman will be performed by Ottawa’s National Arts Centre orchestra.
“It’s part of my bicultural identity, both sides of the world: my Chinese roots, with many ancestors coming from Beijing; and Ottawa, where I was born.”
Ho moved to Calgary at age five, started piano lessons at seven, and began composing as a teenager.
With bachelor and master’s of music degrees in his pocket, he only believed in composition as a real job (everyone else was working in the energy industry) after a Paris summer program.
With his University of Southern California doctorate (in musical arts) he joined the Winnipeg Symphony as composer-in-residence.
“I thought, ‘OK, I guess this is going to be my path. I have loved every minute of it. You just have to be open to doors opening.”
In 2015, Ho moved back to Calgary to his current roles.
This year will be busy. Ho has finished the first draft of a composition to be performed by the Taipei Chinese Orchestra, is working on multiple Land’s End pieces, and his newest love is creating and producing music videos for classical performances.