|
 Jennifer Tung is renowned as a pianist, vocal coach, soprano and instructor. A versatile artist, she relocated in Toronto in 1998, having completed her Bachelor of Music degree in Voice Performance and Master of Music degree in Piano Accompanying and Chamber Music at the world renowned Eastman School of Music where she was a fellowship student.
A native of Hong Kong, she began her music education at the age of 9, capturing numerous first prizes in voice and piano from national competitions in Hong Kong and China. Among her other distinctions are the Ann Fern award for best vocal accompaniment at the Kneisel Competition and the Barbara M.H. Koeng Award for best vocal accompanist of the year at the Eastman School of Music.
Jennifer Tung has performed to great acclaim as a vocalist and pianist. At the age of 16, she made her vocal debut with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra for the opening celebration of the Hong Kong Cultural Arts Centre, giving the world premier of the “Green Cantata” by Swiss composer Heinrich Schweitzer which was subsequently recorded for CD. She was soprano soloist in Handel’s “Messiah” and Bach’s “Magnificat” with the Rochester Chamber Orchestra and St. Paul’s Festival Orchestra as well as singing Mozart’s “Exultate Jubilate” with Sinfonia Mississauga. As a chamber musician, she has collaborated with members of the Mississauga Chamber Music Society and famous artists such as Peggy Pearson, Thomas Paul, Allison Melville, George Gao etc. In 2002, Tung was the soprano soloist for the world premier of “Shakespeare’s Aviary” by Canadian composer Alexander Rappaport with the Mississauga Chamber Music Society at the Living Arts Centre. In 2003, Tung toured North western Ontario with the quartet Rhapsody Junction as well as performing with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. Recently, Tung was the soprano soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the Etobicoke Symphony Orchestra as well as the St. Paul’s Orchestra (Hong Kong). As a vocal coach, she was the music director for “Don Giovanni”, “La vie Parisienne” and “Magic Flute” with Summer Opera Lyric Theatre (SOLT) for 3 consecutive years, working alongside renowned artists such as Guillermo Silva – Marin, Stuart Hamilton, Marshall Pynkoski, Rosemary Landry, Catherine Robbin etc. In the summers of 2006 & 2007, Tung was hired to be the repetiteur for the “Lib-Lab” Program as well as “Opera Briefs” at the Tapestry New Opera Studio. She was subsequently invited to perform with the company in the Canadian premier tour of the opera “Elijah’s Kite” in the fall of 2006. To her credit, Tung has performed at prestigious Canadian venues such as Roy Thompson Hall, Muskoka Lakes Music Festival, and the Toronto Centre for the Performing Arts among others.
Tung is active as a vocal coach/ accompanist with some of Toronto’s leading vocalists. In recent years, she has been invited to join the faculty as staff accompanist at leading summer festivals such as Algonquin International Music Institute and International School for Musical Arts. Tung’s piano and voice students have captured first places in competitions across Ontario, including the prestigious Rose Bowl trophy for senior voice in Kiwanis Music Festival (Toronto), have won major scholarships, and have captured top prizes in both piano and voice at the Ontario provincial music festival. Her students have also successfully auditioned for entrances with scholarships into the music programs of University of Toronto (Bachelor of Music in Performance, Opera School, Master of Music), McGill University, Boston Conservatory, New England Conservatory, Indiana University, Eastman School of Music etc. Tung was appointed to the faculty (piano & voice) of Merriam School of Music in 1999 and to the Royal Conservatory as the coordinator and Faculty of the YAPA (Young Artist Performance Academy) vocal program in 2004. For the past 2 summers, she was on faculty as a vocal coach at the “Songfest” Young Artist Program, teaching alongside renowned artists such as Martin Katz, D’Anna Fortunata and Judith Kellock. Most recently, Tung was appointed as the piano repetiteur/accompanist position at the inaugural season of the Tapestry New Opera Works Studio.
|