Chi Hoe Mak
Chi Hoe enjoys a varied career as an award-winning choral conductor, singer, adjudicator and clinician. He is currently Artistic Director of Young Choral Academy, Artistic Director of the Penang Philharmonic Chorus, Principal Artist and Resident Chorus Master of Kuala Lumpur City Opera in Malaysia. As a choral conductor, Chi Hoe is co-founder of the Malaysian Choral Eisteddfod (MCE) and has won numerous prizes and awards with his choirs. He was the first Asian conductor to win a prestigious fellowship to work with the London Symphony Chorus in 2010 which launched his conducting career in the UK and was appointed Resident Chorus Master at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire from 2009-2012. He made his UK festival debut in 2011 as Chorus Master for the Lichfield Festival Chorus with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) followed by positions including Chorus Master of the Birmingham Cathedral Festival Chorus, Birmingham City University Chorus, Chorus Mentor for Birmingham Opera Company, Conductor of the Birmingham Junior Conservatoire Chamber Choir and a staff conductor with Canzonetta Children’s Choirs in Manchester. Chi Hoe has been on the jury panel at several international choir competitions in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Russia, Singapore and Vietnam and has presented as a clinician in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Philippines, Singapore, throughout the UK and Malaysia. A singer of noted versatility, Chi Hoe was a prize winner at several voice competitions including First Prizes at the 1997 and 1998 Malaysian National Art Song Competition and winner of the 2015 Cameronian Arts Award for Best Vocal Performance of the year. He is in demand as a singer in opera, concert, recital and for consort work throughout Malaysia and abroad. He has sung as a soloist with all the major orchestras in Malaysia, including several collaborations with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO). Concert engagements have taken him to China, Indonesia, France, Germany, Singapore, Spain and throughout the UK. He is currently a member of several ensembles including BachFest Malaysia, The Wicked Music People Early Music Group and The Song Weavers, alongside his position as Principal Artist with Kuala Lumpur City Opera. Chi Hoe studied at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in the UK, where he received two Master of Music (MMus) degrees in Vocal Performance and Choral Conducting, both with Distinctions and the Advanced Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Performance. He was named one of Birmingham’s ‘New Generation Artists’ in 2008, winning all the major conducting prizes at College including the 2009 and 2010 Michael Beech Conducting Awards and the coveted Principal’s Prize for ‘outstanding contribution to the musical life at the institution’. He has recently been conferred an Honorary Membership (HonRBC) of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire for his outstanding contribution to the profession and has just been elected a member of the IFCM Asia-Pacific Choral Council. www.chihoemak.net