The Strad: Hsin-Yun Huang: Life Lessons

The Strad

The Taiwanese violist on what she learnt from her early years, and her move to the UK’s Yehudi Menuhin School

When I was growing up in Taiwan, people either played piano or violin. I learnt piano, and when the time came to learn a second instrument, at ten years old I thought I may as well be useful and play something other than the violin! So I went to the orchestra office and asked what they needed, which was the viola. At first I didn’t take it very seriously, but it was with the guidance of conductor Felix Chen that I progressed to the level of being able to join the Menuhin School when I was 14. Every Saturday my friends and I would spend five hours at Felix’s house having lunch, drawing, singing, joking, playing sonatas and duos – just having fun. This sense of the joy of music was also emphasised by my father, who taught us to sing. He had such a fresh mind and was so open to the world.

I was part of one of the first generations in the Taiwan music scene to get the chance to go abroad. People often say, ‘You poor thing, it must have been so hard,’ but at the time that wasn’t the mentality I had. I felt so lucky to have the freedom to explore and learn. Only in retrospect do I realise I developed coping strategies for what was often a very difficult time. Chamber music became my medicine and my daily walks around the school taught me the importance of taking time for myself.

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