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Many musicians dream of solo stardom, but a youth orchestra wants to show that there is strength in numbers, writes Keira Lu HuangWhen 15-year-old Harry Chiu Chin-pong, who plays the French horn, first performed with the Hong Kong-based Asian Youth Orchestra last year, he was just another aspiring young musician.新蒲崗迷你倉One year later, Harry is a winner of the under-18 category of the 2013 Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales, one of the world’s toughest competitions for soloists.“I love playing solo,” Harry says. “In an orchestra, you always need to listen to others and match their playing. But as a soloist, I own the stage.”Harry, who is still part of the Asian Youth Orchestra, is among a growing number of young musicians who have ambitions to become soloists – a trend that Richard Pontzious, the orchestra’s artistic director and conductor, believes will deter talented players from joining youth orchestras.Throughout its 23-year history, the orchestra has encountered problems with funding, sponsorship, performance venues and travelling. But it has never been threatened by a drop in intake, and he’s worried that might happen. At present, it has more than 90 players coming from Hong Kong, the mainland, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines, among others.Many of the musicians who auditioned recently have set their sights on solo stardom, even though the chances of this materialising are very low, Pontzious says.So what is the appeal of a solo career? Pontzious remembers that several years ago, during training, a young violinist went up to her violin coach and expressed a strong desire to be a solo star like Yo-Yo Ma or Jian Wang, the latter of whom used to be the coach’s student.The young violinist said she wanted to fly first-class, have someone carry her instrument and not have to practise any more. This quickly became a joke among the orchestra’s members, but it also raised some serious concerns.“These kids and their parents think that magic hits you and then you are a star, just like that,” Pontzious says, snapping his fingers. mini storageThat really doesn’t happen.”What does happen, when playing for a quality orchestra, is that the young musicians learn to become disciplined artists, says Pontzious. He believes that discipline is the key to success for musicians, but most young players don’t have this attribute when they start out.The Asian Youth Orchestra held its inaugural concerts in 1990 and has been known for its high-quality performances and extremely competitive auditions.Every year, the committee selects about 100 talented youngsters, from among tens of thousands across East and Southeast Asia, to take part in a six-week training programme each summer, which includes a number of public performances. But this year, the number of hopefuls fell short of expectations.The programme includes an international concert tour, and travelling with people from different backgrounds is a way for musicians to find out more about themselves, says Pontzious. They perform in nine Asian cities in three weeks.Pontzious hopes the experience of travelling with almost 100 other musicians will show how tough a touring musician’s life can be.Not all its members go on to play in orchestras full time. Andy Hsu, 20, a violinist from Taipei, has been part of the orchestra since last year, but in the off-seasons works as a freelance musician for celebrities, earning as much as HK$50,000 a month.“Not everyone can be a soloist, but not everyone wants to be a soloist either,” Hsu says. “I want freedom.”keira.huang@scmp.comPrincipal conductor James Judd leads the orchestra on August 23 in a programme that will include Carl Maria von Weber’s Overture to Der Freisch�tz , Dvorak’s Cello Concerto in B minor (with cello virtuoso Steven Isserlis as soloist) and Sibelius’ Symphony No2. Richard Pontzious will take up the baton on August 24 for a programme features Brahms’ Symphony No3 in F, Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C (with Isserlis) and Beethoven’s Symphony No5 in C minor. Both shows at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall, 8pm. HK$350, HK$250, HK$180 and HK$100 from Urbtix. Inquiries: 2866 1623 or 2734 9009self storage