What were you doing in 1997?
I had just decided to be a cellist, and I was in Boston learning how to play the cello again.

What are you doing now in 2007?
I have been traveling a great deal this year, started the year working on a soundtrack recording for a German-Hong Kong co-produced film “The Drummer.” Afterwards I had a recital tour in Holland, a concerto series at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, a tour in Croatia, and in June, coming back to Hong Kong for the 10th Anniversary of the HKSAR recording for RTHK and a celebration concert with the China National Philharmonic. For the rest of the year, I will be continuing to travel and perform in Europe and Asia.

What will you do in 2017?
I hope I will be taking part again in celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the HKSAR!

Which musicians would be your dream to perform with? And where would the concert take place?
I would love to meet Brahms and make him write a cello concerto—he is the reason I became a musician. In my fantasy, he would then conduct the first performance with me as the soloist, and since he is dead, this would probably take place in heaven.

Why don’t you just make music as your hobby?
There are many things one can call music. A hobby, a passion, a job, a life-long devotion—or in my case, all of the above!

What’s the difference with yours & the others’ playings?
Like every musician or artist, my expression of my music is a composite or summation of all of my past personal experiences combined with the personality that the experiences created, as well as the stimuli that I receive at the moment of musical execution. Therefore, it is only natural that we are all different in our own ways, not only as musicians, but as human beings.

Is there any artist who has great impact or influence on you?
Every artist has influenced me. It is often enough to see and to know that others are out there creating their own works or performances—this is a constant reminder to me that the artistic process is one that goes on forever, and I should never retreat from that process as well.

What is your feeling about the recording in the CD?
The CD is a wonderful way for musicians to spread our craft. Like every invention, it is successful because it serves a useful purpose to society, giving it yet another avenue through which to enjoy music.

Music, Words, pictures and language, which one you think is the best way to express yourself?
I like the way music can express a great deal without the need for pictures, words, or language. It is this ambiguity that gives music the ability to express so much. Every listener can interpret the music’s message differently, and still find ways to enjoy it. This also allows for the listener’s own imagination to enrich the experience of listening to a performance—the listener should not always be required to be subordinated by the dictates of the performer.

Any unforgettable stories happened in the past 10 years?
For me, every performance is unique and unforgettable. This happens because every time I take to the stage, it is almost like a cosmic collision of a multitude of factors that make for such a unique experience. These factors include: how I am feeling; what sort of energy the audience is emanating; the spontaneity of the collaboration with my partners on stage; or simply a serendipitous moment in the music that inspires something completely new in the interpretation.

What is your Motto?
Something I have learned from being a performer is that one should not dwell on mistakes during a performance because then it is very easy to lose sight of the bigger picture of the entire performance. I find that this is very apt in life as well, because, until time travel is invented, we will always be living in a forward-moving time continuum, which can be very unforgiving if one decides to take too long a pause for regrets.

The most important prizes you have received in the past decade:
I would say winning 1st prize at 2004 International Antonio Janigro Cello Competition, and receiving ‘Leader of the Year Award’ by Sing Tao News Publishing Group presented to me by Maestro Edo de Waart were very memorable to me.

If you’re not a musician, what do you think you will be?
Indiana Jones! I love traveling to foreign countries and discovering for myself the history and culture of each new place. I don’t particularly want to experience his ordeals, but perhaps just his discoveries.

If there is only one piece of music exists in the world, which piece you want it to be? Why?
That is something I hope will never happen and something I cannot even begin to think about. What a tragedy that would be!

Who’s your most favourite artist? Why?
My favorite artist is probably the anonymous one who created any of the ancient relics that have been passed down to us through time. Even though we don’t know whose hands crafted a pyramid in Egypt or Mexico, or who painted a fresco in France or China, or who created a precious ceramic in ancient Babylonia, it shows me that there has always been a desire for artistic creativity, and that I am only a part of this human tradition that has existed through antiquity, and will endure as long as human civilization continues on this planet.

Do you always bring something with you while you’re playing in a competition?
There is no difference between what I used to bring to competitions and what I bring to all my performances today—namely, my heart and my mind. To me, these are the two most important components to music-making. The mind frames the music within a certain logical reference, while the heart endows the music with all the emotions of that come from being human.

If, time stays in a particular year, you wish it to be? Why?
Sometime around 2097...then I could be around to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of HKSAR!