Spotlight interview from RWS Entertainment!

Can’t believe another 4 months flew by so quickly!!! The Eurodam was so fun, all that hiking in Alaska and driving around Hawaii and lying on the beaches of Mexico … and most of all, this quintet family has been a truly special group <3.

ALSO - I’m super excited to be featured on one of RWS Entertainment’s Spotlight interviews!

Here is the post!

CONGRATULATIONS TO TONG WANG! OUR SPOTLIGHT IS ON YOU THIS WEEK! #LCSSpotlight2018

Tong is classically-trained pianist from Edmonton, Alberta. As a soloist, Tong has performed with the Edmonton Youth Orchestra and the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. She recently performed Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto with the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Claude Lapalme. She is the recipient of various prizes and awards including the International Chopin Golden Ring Competition, Canadian Music Competition, New England Conservatory George Chadwick Medal, and the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal of Performing Arts. Tong has been involved in various creative, social, and entrepreneurial projects including Zenkora Universe, Music for Food, and New England Conservatory’s Community Partnerships and Performances. She is a member of the Z4 piano quartet, who as winners of the McGill Chamber Music Competition performed at the Central Conservatory in Beijing and the Lunenburg Academy in Nova Scotia. Her teachers include Kyoko Hashimoto, Bruce Brubaker, and Boris Konovalov. Tong obtained her Bachelor of Music from the New England Conservatory in Boston, and is currently pursuing her Masters of Music at the McGill University in Montreal.

How would you describe your experience as a Lincoln Center Stage program musician:
Lincoln Center Stage is a very special place. My experience here has exceeded any expectations. This program offers such a unique, personal performance environment and fosters a genuine, heartwarming appreciation for chamber music. Personally, seeing the world while doing what I love most with a family of incredible musicians has truly been a dream come true. I’m so honored and grateful to be part of this program and this incredible team!

Which composer influences you the most and why:
Rachmaninoff. His music lies closest to my heart. I grew up studying with a Russian teacher and Rachmaninoff’s music came the most natural to me. I am constantly inspired by the depth and generosity of emotion in his writing. The overwhelming, overflowing passion, the rich texture and heart-wrenching harmonies, the way he makes the piano resonate ... Rachmaninoff’s music always brings me to tears. It is so sincere, so unapologetically expressive. And that resonates with the romantic in me, I think.

Most embarrassing stage moment during a performance:
During Shostakovich’s 5 Pieces for 2 violins and piano, I was making a normal page turn with the foot pedal and realized to my horror that the next page was not there. The pedal sometimes turns multiple pages so I was desperately flipping back and forth to find my place. But that page was just GONE. It wasn’t there at all. I somehow managed to delete it randomly. I continued trying to make up an accompaniment but my mind just blanked and the harmonies were disastrous. I could feel the death glares from my violinists. That was the longest 2 minutes of my life.

Proudest stage moment during a performance:
This work opportunity has not only taught me valuable musicianship skills, but more importantly, reignited my belief in the power of live classical music. The unique approach of our programs — incorporating personal speaking points, audience interaction, and educational elements — builds a relationship between performer and listener that I have never before experienced. More than ever, I am convinced of the tangible impact of our art. I could feel it through each personal connection, through the abundance of warmth, joy, and excitement in our intimate concert space. I am proud in every moment I feel those connections.

Can you describe the most touching interaction with an audience member:
I’ve experienced many touching moments when audiences from all different backgrounds, ages, musical experiences come up to tell us how we have made an significant lasting impact on their lives. I particularly love hearing from those audiences to whom we exposed classical music for the first time. They told us they felt so welcomed in our cozy venue, that they appreciated the personal and educational aspect of our talking points, and how they continued to explore and fall in love with all different genres of music they have not had the opportunity to be exposed to before. I have so many vivid memories of audiences coming to thank us with tears in their eyes. We became great friends with many of the guests that we see every night at our shows. It’s a truly special kind of concert experience.

Best Thing about working for the Lincoln Center Stage Program onboard Holland America Line:
The music, of course. But also the incredible traveling adventures and the incredibly meaningful relationships I’ve built with both my quintet family and the many guests. To have the privilege of crossing paths with so many individuals, to hear their stories, to make an impact on their lives, and to know that we are appreciated as artists and as people, that the energy we invest is reaching someone — these are among the most beautiful rewards in my career as an artist.

From everyone at RWS Entertainment Group, we would like to thank you for all of your hard work this contract and for showing everyone how you raised your experience!