Alana Chan is an active conductor, music educator, adjudicator, examiner, and pianist across Canada, America, Europe, Macau and China. With a deep passion for conducting, she was recognised as one of the Top Emerging Canadian Conductors at the RBC Canadian Conductors Showcase where she made her guest debut with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. She is the Music Director of the Simon Fraser University Concert Orchestra since 2015, and A Little Night Music Orchestra since 2018. The orchestras she has conducted include the London Serenata, Prague Summer Nights Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra, Pacific Region International Summer Music Academy Orchestra, Hong Kong Symphonia, Hong Kong Elite Chamber Orchestra, Hong Kong Children’s Symphony Orchestra on concert tour in Vienna. She also conducted the Chamber Orchestra of New York at the International Respighi Conducting Competition where she was the first female conductor to be awarded Honorable Mention in Carnegie Hall. In the summer of 2018, Alana was the Assistant and Cover Conductor for the fully staged opera of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” at the Prague Summer Nights Music Festival in the historical Estates Theater (the only standing theater where Mozart conducted in) in Prague. She also conducted a staged opera scenes concert in Tabor, Czech Republic. Alana was invited to return to Prague again in the summer of 2019 for the production of Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” and “Marriage of Figaro”. Back home in Canada, she was invited to conduct one of the fully-staged performances of the musical production “Once Upon a Mattress” by Rodgers and Barer, presented by the North Shore Light Opera Society in May 2019. Alana’s conducting teachers and mentors include Dr. John Farrer, Professor Howard Williams, Dirk Brossé, Salvatore Di Vittorio, Timothy Long, John Nardolillo, Frank Klassen, Ken Hsieh, Darrell Ang, Jonathan Darlington, Arthur Arnold, Jimmy Chiang, and Professor Mark Shapiro with whom she studied with at The Juilliard School in the Advanced Conducting Intensive Program.
In her earlier musical career as a pianist, Alana has won numerous awards including First Place in the Canadian Music Competition, First Prize in the Kay Meek Competition, and was placed top ten in the International Pacific Piano Competition. This was followed by her debut piano concerto performance with legendary Maestro Victor Feldbrill and The Vancouver Academy of Music Orchestra at the prestigious Orpheum Theatre. She is an alumna of the Vancouver Academy of Music where she studied with Professors Saida Matyukov and Lee Kum Sing. In Hong Kong, she studied with renowned pianist Choi Sown Le. Alana attained her Master of Arts degree in Music with Distinction, and was awarded the Scholastic Award for being the top of her graduating class from the Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU). A few years later, she was featured in the Hong Kong Ming-Pao Daily newspaper (Feb.2nd 2018 issue) for being one of the most successful alumni of HKBU. Upon invitation, she wrote and published an article on “Playing Together as One” for The Pianist Magazine (Issue 9). In recent years, Alana was featured in the Japanese magazine Fraser Monthly, the Fairchild Chinese Radio, and was interviewed on Fairchild TV of Vancouver in 2020 after she created and directed a Music TV with A Little Night Music Orchestra dedicated to everyone in the world affected by Covid-19 and discussed how music can promote healing.
Alana’s abundance of music teaching experience involved leading music workshops, school bands and choirs. She founded and taught the school choir for children with special needs at the Jockey Club Sarah Roe School of the English Schools Foundation in Hong Kong. Alana was on faculty at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. In 2012, she was invited by the Government of Hong Kong to give a series of “Summer Music Workshops – First Music Lessons” for two consecutive summers. In Canada, Alana is currently on faculty at the Vancouver Academy of Music in the Piano and Theory Depts and the College Division. She is also an Examiner as well as a certified Advanced Specialist of the Royal Conservatory of Music in Piano, Music Theory and History. The competitions she adjudicated include the Canadian Music Competition (CMC), the 20th Asia Piano Open Competition, Vancouver International Music Competition, 25th and 26th Annual Edith Lando Gifted Youth Music Competition, Phyllis Salter Annual Piano Competition, Vancouver Academy of Music Junior and Intermediate Symphony Concerto Competitions, Mozart School of Music Vancouver Piano Concerto Competition, and Mastery School of Music Concerto Competition. She is currently the Vice President of the Vancouver International Music Competition and the Canada International Arts and Music Society; and has served on the board for the Vancouver Women’s Musical Society.
Besides music, she has also made contributions in the field of Chemistry and was awarded the Vice President Research Award from the Simon Fraser University.
Andy Kim, Concertmaster
B.Sc. (Simon Fraser University), ARCT (Violin Performance)
Andy is a Violin Advanced Performance major enrolled at the University of British Columbia School of Music. At a young age, Andy studied with Hungarian violinist, Erno Kabok. Having completed the Associate of the Royal Conservatory examination in performance at fifteen, he has held the concertmaster position of the Kabok Strings Chamber Orchestra, the North Shore Light Opera Society Pit Orchestra, and the Simon Fraser University Concert Orchestra.
He has performed at multiple well-known venues including the Orpheum, the Rudolfinum and the Estates Theatre in Prague and has received coaching from Lauren Roth and David Gillham. In addition, Andy continues to polish his technique by performing in masterclasses with distinguished soloists such as Josef Spacek, Axel Strauss, Elissa Lee, Nancy Dahn, and Timothy Steeves.
Currently, he is studying under Jasper Wood at UBC and is teaching violin privately at the Maple Leaf Music School while leading A Little Night Music Orchestra (ALNMO) as concertmaster under the baton of his mentor, Alana Chan.
Gord Deyell, Composer in Residence
Peter Stigings, Conductor/Music Director Emeritus
Little Night Music Orchestra has been fortunate to have Peter Stigings as its Conductor and Music Director since September 2002. Peter has been involved in music and the arts for 40 years, and has served as conductor, adjudicator, evaluator and clinician throughout Canada, the United States and Hong Kong. He has directed bands, choirs, orchestras, jazz bands and is known as a master teacher. His bands and ensembles have participated in numerous regional, provincial, national and international festivals and events, and have toured extensively throughout Canada as well as the United States, Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, England, Hong Kong, Macau and Japan.
Peter has served on a number of boards, including the British Columbia Music Educators’ Association, Canadian Music Educators’ Association, Vancouver Kiwanis Jazz Festival, Canadian Stage Band National Festival, Rocky Mountain National Festival, Pacific Music Fraser MacPherson Trust Fund, and the International Association of Jazz Educators. In 1990 the British Columbia Music Educators’ Association awarded Peter an Honorary Life Membership in recognition of his years of service to music education. In June 1999 he received the prestigious Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence.
Peter retired as Chair of the Fine Arts Department and Director of Bands at Magee Secondary School in Vancouver in 1999. He is presently on the Faculty of Education at the University of British Columbia as a sessional lecturer and faculty advisor. In February 2002 he co-chaired the BC Music Educators annual provincial conference.
The members of A Little Night Music are challenged and inspired by Peter’s enthusiasm, dedication and ability to convey musical concepts succinctly, and are excited to be playing under Peter’s baton.
Derek MacDermot, FounderDerek MacDermot Derek MacDermot was the heart and soul of A Little Night Music for 30 years.
After his first career as a professional singer (interrupted by service in the Canadian Air Force during the Second World War), Derek taught music in the public school systems in Vancouver and on Vancouver Island until his retirement as a schoolteacher. Besides conducting his own school bands, he conducted musicals in Victoria and had a community orchestra in Saanich. When Derek returned to Vancouver in 1970 after obtaining a Master’s Degree in Music from the University of Wisconsin, he recognized the need for a community orchestra in Vancouver and began discussions with the Vancouver School Board to establish an orchestra as part of the VSB’s night school curriculum. Soon afterwards, A Little Night Music was born, and the rest is history.
The Orchestra has fond memories of Derek’s 30 years on the podium. He made a personal connection with each member, and through his encouragement and gentle humour he brought out the best in each player’s abilities (once prompting an audience member at a Robson Square summer concert to identify A Little Night Music as the VSO). Derek’s love of music and devotion to the Orchestra were contagious, and audiences often commented on the obvious enthusiasm of the musicians.
On Derek’s retirement in June 2002, he was appointed Conductor Emeritus of A Little Night Music Orchestra. Sadly, Derek passed away suddenly on December 4th, 2003. Our condolences to his family, including his partner, Joy McKim, former ALNM pianist.