Brandon Chui
Q: When did you start playing?
A: I started playing violin at the age of 13 and I took up viola in 2005.
Q: What made you choose your instrument?
A: When I was around 11, I discovered two VHS cassettes on which my father had recorded 2 concerts off of PBS : Carnegie Hall's centenary concert with the New York Phil, James Levine, Zubin Mehta and various artists, and the other being a 150th birthday gala concert for Tchaikovsky with the Leningrad Phil and Temirkanov, also with various artists. I watched these videos practically nonstop, especially during the summer! At the time, I was playing trombone in elementary school (which I kept playing until the end of high school) and was obsessed with it, so I watched these videos primarily for the trombone moments. You can find that very same Tchaikovsky video on Youtube of Leningrad doing 1812 Overture with some pretty loud, bombastic, obnoxious trombone playing, which as a kid I loved, and still to this day, makes me laugh. Gradually I was more and more taken by the fiddle playing on these videos (Perlman plays Tchaikovsky and Serenade Melancolique and Valse-Scherzo like no other...also available on Youtube!) and it took 2 years of begging my parents to get lessons. They had already started me on piano - that was a failed experiment, and the trombone was loud enough at home. Boy am I happy they let me make more noise!
Q: What is your most memorable HPO experience?
A: Playing my first Mahler 4 in 2008 as well as the first ever What Next Festival (of new music, January 2010). What a feeling - to explore the unknown and have so many of you coming along for the ride.
Q: What kind of things do you like to do when you’re not playing?
A: Those who know me know that I like food. If you want to eat, we're friends! I'm also a bit of a music nerd and love to read up on music and listen to recordings. Something is playing all the time - except for feeding time!
Q: Who is your favourite composer to play or listen to?
A: Depends on the day, week or month. What I find though is that I can always listen to Bach. Solo Bach, the Cantatas, the Passions, the Masses, etc. - all Bach, all day.
Q: Favourite book? Movie?
A: Coming to America and Anchorman - two movies that have me howling in laughter - something I like!!
Q: Do you have a secret indulgence?
A: I always eat something every night before I go to bed. I must. For the last few nights, it's been raw chorizo (Palacio's, imported from Spain - you will find no better!). My wife does it too, so is it a secret? Not really. Is it an indulgence? Sure.
Q: Who was your hero when you were 10? Who is your hero now?
A: I don't know about 10, but now I'd have to say my late father. No one else taught me firsthand the meaning of patience, understanding and love.
