Elliot Leung
Elliot Ho Yat Leung (Chinese: 梁皓一; pinyin: Liang Haoyi) is a composer from Hong Kong who broke into Hollywood in 2023.[1] He was a recipient of the Huabiao Award, and is the youngest in the history of the awards to receive this recognition for music. His works have been performed by orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra. Leung has collaborated with many notable conductors, namely Daniel Harding, Yu Long and Gerard Salonga. He is best known for his symphonic works, most notably his film scores for Operation Red Sea and The Battle at Lake Changjin as well as his Symphony No. 1 "The Metaverse".[2] He was named on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2022.[3] As of November 2023, his films have grossed $2.2 billion USD worldwide.
Elliot Ho Yat Leung 梁皓一 | |
|---|---|
Leung in May 2017 during the 1st Hong Kong Shenzhen Cultural Exchange "同心耀中華 — 紫荊花開." | |
| Background information | |
| Born | August 3, 1995 British Hong Kong |
| Genres | Film scores, Classical, Symphonic |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, Music Director, Multi-instrumentalist |
| Instrument(s) | Keyboard, Piano, Cello |
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Labels | Sony Classical |
| Website | www |
Early life edit
Leung was born and raised in British Hong Kong, the eldest of two children to a father who had dreams to be a visual artist and a mother who wanted to pursue a musical career.[4] His mother plays piano and was first chorale soprano, then a choir conductor. He received early music education in St. Paul's Co-educational College and the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, and transferred to International Christian School in his secondary years.[5] He later furthered his studies in Wheaton Conservatory of Music for Music Composition. He studied under professor emeritus Howard Whitaker, pupil of Darius Mihaud.
When Leung was two years old, his mother began teaching him how to play the piano. When he turned five, his swift musical growth was quickly identified by teachers of St. Paul's Co-educational College. The next year, Leung was sent to study music and the cello with former Principal Cellist of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Laurent Perrin. When he was fifteen, Leung made his debut appearance on CCTV's "Asian Art Festival · Charming China (亞洲藝術盛典 · 魅力中國)" show. As a child, Leung aspired to be an orchestra conductor until encountering the music from Halo: Combat Evolved during his teens, driving him to pursue another career that revolves around symphonic music.[1]
Leung was mentored by Martin O'Donnell when he traveled to the United States to further his musical pursuits. O'Donnell's modal music from Halo was a musical influence throughout Leung's upbringing. In an interview, Leung commented that his original post-college intentions were to follow O'Donnell's footsteps and pursue graduate studies in music at the University of Southern California until he was scouted and named the composer of Operation Red Sea.[6] The two share a close relationship, as O'Donnell was seen attending the premiere of Leung's Symphony No. 1 in Hong Kong in 2023.
Career edit
2014 to 2017: Beginnings in Hong Kong edit
Leung's first job in the film industry was working as a composer assistant on the film "Insanity" in 2014. In 2015, he started writing music for various kinds of projects while continuing to work as an orchestrator. During this time, his choral music was highly praised by Bernard Chan of the Hong Kong Executive Council.[7] He also composed RTHK radio 1's new station jingle. His arrangement of "Descendants of the Dragon" (龍的傳人) was also performed in "同心耀中華 — 紫荊花開," held in Shenzhen as the concert finale as a part of the Hong Kong SAR's 20th Anniversary celebrations.[8][9][10]
Leung's breakthrough came in 2017, when Dante Lam sought him out to compose the score of Operation Red Sea (紅海行動). The film was selected to represent Hong Kong in the best foreign-language film category at the 91st Academy Awards.[11]
2017 – 2021: Breakthrough and Acclaim in the Chinese Film Industry edit
Leung's work on Operation Red Sea was highly acclaimed and was broadly praised by critics for elevating Chinese film music to a world class standard. Alex Lines from Film Inquiry called it "a score that invigorates life" [12] while Jonathan Broxton of Movie Music UK wrote:
The score is by the very talented young Hong Kong-based composer Elliot Leung; this is the first score of his I have heard, but on this evidence I'm very impressed. What I like about Leung's writing is how much energy and inventiveness it has. It uses a full orchestra and a whole host of throbbing, pulsating electronic loops and beats, but despite the fact that it sits firmly within a now familiar sonic world, Leung does so much with it, rhythmically and thematically. [The writing is] outstanding, full of interesting and unexpectedly creative string ostinatos, unique-sounding electronic elements, and regular outbursts of brass-led power. The main reason I enjoy Operation Red Sea so much is because I want people like Lorne Balfe and Tom Holkenborg to write for their contemporary action movies, and why I'm so disappointed when those big names so often show such a lack of creativity and musical ambition. Bravo to Elliot Leung for proving that you <I>can</I> write music in that style, but still do it with flair and panache.[13]
Following the success of his breakthrough score, Leung was invited to write for "The Rescue," and was involved in the production since pre-production.[14] After numerous delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the soundtrack album was finally released internationally by Milan Records on December 18, 2020.[15] Many of Leung's pieces from these films, such as "The Valiant Flight" and "Operation Red Sea Concert Suite" have been performed on numerous occasions, such as the 8th Beijing International Film Festival and the 1st Foshan Film Festival. A much longer suite, titled "Operation Red Sea Concert Suite II" was commissioned by the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra premiered in the New Year Concert of 2024 to a full house audience.
Leung's prowess was quickly discovered by the video game industry. After Tencent Games invited him to compose for Honor of Kings, the highest-grossing mobile game of all-time, ByteDance invited him to compose for Dragonheir: Silent Gods [4] and Moonton Games invited him to compose for Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.
In 2021, Leung composed the theme and the score for The Battle at Lake Changjin, the second-highest-grossing film of 2021; the highest-grossing film in Chinese cinema history; and the highest-grossing non-English film of all time. Leung was invited to return for the sequel, The Battle at Lake Changjin II. The score was highly successful. It was nominated for a Golden Rooster Award and won a Huabiao Award for best original score. Vinyls of the Soundtrack (Collector's Edition) was released a year later.
2022-Present: Hollywood and Symphony No. 1 edit
In 2022, Leung was listed on the Forbes' 2022 30 under 30.[3] After writing for Disney+ series Anita, Leung decided to return to his classical roots and began a yearlong journey composing his Symphony No. 1 "The Metaverse" while relocating to Los Angeles in a bid to break into Hollywood. The symphony was commissioned by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Asia Society as the world's first symphony work to be premiered both in a concert hall and in the Sandbox.[5] In early 2022, Leung signed with Kraft-Engel Management.[6] Shortly after, he was announced as the composer of Six Days in Fallujah by Victura and Highwire Games and Freelance by Pierre Morel,[7] making him the first from Hong Kong to break into Hollywood as a lead composer.
The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra premiered Symphony No. 1 "The Metaverse" and "Through the Fog, Into the Darkness," an overture to the video game Six Days in Fallujah on May 5th, 2023 under the baton of conductor Gerard Salonga in the Hong Kong Cultural Centre concert hall with a full house audience. The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra later performed the work in July 2023. Following the premiere, classical music critic Tina Fu of the South China Morning Post wrote:
Symphony No. 1, "The Metaverse" celebrates different technological advancements and have different characters from each other in the four movements. Citing traditional influences such as Jean Sibelius, Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Rachmaninoff, Leung's music has flair and romance, and the players were impressive with their sensitive treatment of the materials. The second movement, with a title of "Fibre Optics: An Homage to Sir Charles Kao", was stunning. Leung wrote two solo passages for the cello and the viola. Bamping was again at his best, with good sound and intonation that made the elegant piece sing. Principal violist Andrew Ling, accompanied by pianist Linda Yim, provided the most moving passage of all. The development section packed a punch from percussion and brass sections, and Salonga conducted with firmness and clarity. The balance of the orchestra's sound in the triumphant coda was nicely controlled, and bar some uneven harmonics among the violins in the ending, Salonga and the players interpreted the colourful piece with deep feeling. [16]
The symphony was released on October 27, 2023 by Sony Classical.[17]
In September 2023, the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra commissioned Leung to write a new piece for their 23-24 season. Leung composed "Aureate Skylines," capturing the vibrancy of the Greater Bay Region. The premiere was conducted by Daniel Harding on January 28th, 2024 in Xinghai Concert Hall. The piece was then toured and performed in Shenzhen Concert Hall and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. In November 2023, the New York Philharmonic announced the world premiere of Leung's Lunar Overture.
Discography edit
Theatrical Films edit
| Year | Title | Director(s) | Studio(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Think and Grow Rich: The Legacy | Scott Cervine | Think Rich Films LLC | Documentary Film |
| 2018 | Operation Red Sea | Dante Lam | Polybona Films Star Dream Media | First Collaboration with Dante Lam |
| 2020 | The Rescue | Dante Lam | Tencent Pictures | Second Collaboration with Dante Lam |
| 2021 | Great Expectations | Li Chengpeng | Polybona Films | |
| 2021 | The Battle at Lake Changjin | Dante Lam | Polybona Films | Fourth Collaboration with Dante Lam |
| 2022 | The Battle at Lake Changjin II - Water Gate Bridge | Dante Lam | Polybona Films | Fifth Collaboration with Dante Lam |
| 2023 | Freelance | Pierre Morel | AGC Studios Sentient Entertainment | In collaboration with Geoff Zanelli |
| 2024 | Operation Red Sea 2[18] | Dante Lam | Polybona Films | Sixth Collaboration with Dante Lam |
Video games edit
| Year | Title | Studio(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | LifeAfter: Season 3 | Netease Games | |
| 2022 | Honor of Kings | Tencent Games | Co-composer |
| 2022 | Mobile Legends: Bang Bang | Moonton Elex Technology | Co-composer |
| 2022 | Dragonheir: Silent Gods | Sgra Studio Nuverse | Co-composer |
| 2023 | Six Days in Fallujah | Highwire Games Victura |
Concert Music edit
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Quintet No. 1 "I, Consciousness" | Commissioned by RTHK radio 4 for the premiere concert of the RTHK Chamber Soloists |
| 2020 | Quintet No. 2 "Gardiner Expressway" | Commissioned by RTHK radio 4 for the RTHK Chamber Soloists |
| 2023 | Symphony No. 1 "The Metaverse" | Co-commissioned by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Asia Society, sponsored by Chow Sang Sang and Audio Exotics |
| 2023 | Through the Fog, Into the Darkness | Commissioned by Victura and Highwire Games as an orchestral overture to the game Six Days in Fallujah |
| 2024 | String Quartet No. 1 | Co-commissioned by Audio Exotics and Viva Network HK, revised in 2023, premiered by the String Quartet of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra |
| 2024 | Lunar Overture | World Premiere by the New York Philharmonic[19] |
| 2024 | Aureate Skylines | Commissioned by the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, premiere conducted by Daniel Harding |
Television series edit
| Year | Title | Director(s) | Studio(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Anita: Director's Cut | Longman Leung Lok-Man | Edko Films One Cool Film Production |
Awards and nominations edit
| Year | Award | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | ASCAP Award for Screen Music | Operation Red Sea[20] | Won |
| 2022 | Golden Roster Award for Best Original Score | The Battle at Lake Changjin | Nominated |
| 2023 | Huabiao Award for Best Original Score | The Battle at Lake Changjin | Won |
| 2023 | G.A.N.G. Award for Best Main Theme G.A.N.G. Award for Best Audio in a Casual or Social Game | Honor of Kings | Won |
References edit
- ^ a b "Elliot Leung". Kraft-Engel Management. from the original on 2023-03-10. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
- ^ Wild, Stephi. "Hong Kong Philharmonic Will Perform Metaverse Symphony Concert in May". BroadwayWorld.com. from the original on 2023-04-20. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
- ^ a b "Elliot Leung". Forbes. from the original on 2023-09-04. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
- ^ a b "珠 海 新 聞". jcchuhainews.chuhai.edu.hk. from the original on 2023-04-16. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
- ^ a b "電影音樂作曲家梁皓一｜有誰共鳴｜商業電台 881903". 商業電台 881903 (in Traditional Chinese). 2022-02-07. from the original on 2022-09-03. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
- ^ a b "An Interview with Composer Elliot Leung". Asian Film Strike. 2018-06-15. from the original on 2018-06-25. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- ^ a b "Articles of Bernard Chan". from the original on 27 September 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
- ^ ""同心耀中华"紫荆花开". q.eqxiu.com. from the original on 2017-09-11. Retrieved 2017-05-24.
- ^ "深港青年文化交流藝術季 - 合唱音樂會《紫荊花開》 | The Learners Chorus". The Learners Chorus. from the original on 2017-09-11. Retrieved 2017-06-05.
- ^ "深港青年文化交流艺术季奏响文化情感认同交响曲". news.sina.com.cn. 20 June 2017. from the original on 2017-09-11. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
- ^ "《紅海行動》代表香港角逐奧斯卡最佳外語片 - 香港文匯報". paper.wenweipo.com (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). from the original on 2018-11-03. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
- ^ "影片票房总榜". piaofang.maoyan.com. from the original on 2022-02-22. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
- ^ "梁皓一_梁皓一介绍_图片_作品-猫眼电影". www.maoyan.com. from the original on 2022-09-11. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
- ^ "Elliot Leung to Score Dante Lam's 'The Rescue' & 'Warriors of Future' | Film Music Reporter". from the original on 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2020-12-25.
- ^ "春节档7部电影全部撤档：以疫情为重，以生命为重". ent.ifeng.com. from the original on 2020-11-27. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
- ^ "'Painfully unimpressive' visuals distract from HK Phil's tech-led concerts". South China Morning Post. 2023-05-11. from the original on 2023-06-19. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
- ^ "Elliot Leung". sonyclassical.com. Retrieved 2023-10-26.
- ^ "Dante Lam to bring the pain with 'Operation Red Sea' sequel | cityonfire.com". from the original on 2022-09-07. Retrieved 2021-04-04.
- ^ "Lunar New Year Gala at the New York Philharmonic | February 20, 2024". nyphil.org. Retrieved 2023-12-12.
- ^ "2019 ASCAP Screen Music Awards". www.ascap.com. from the original on 2020-09-23. Retrieved 2019-05-17.