Pianist
The piano was Mike’s earliest instrument, which he began studying at 6 years old. Twenty years later, Mike continues to perform solo repertoire spanning Baroque to jazz and collaborating in chamber music with solo vocalists, strings, choirs, woodwinds, and brass.
Now based in Montréal, Québec, Mike is also performs as an engaging and versatile Chinese-Canadian opera singer and actor in theatre and film. Mike has trained in Italy and performed in Canada, Australia, and the United States.
Mike regularly accompanies as a collaborative pianist at OMFA Provincials, Kiwanis Festivals, and Royal Conservatory of Music examinations. Mike has also performed classical solo and chamber repertoire, music therapy, jazz, pop, and even Disney weddings! Mike’s numerous services as a pianist include private wedding bookings and collaborative piano for RCM exams, competitions, and festivals. Mike’s other pianist credits include “The Women of Broadway and Beyond Concert” at the world premiere of Elvin Do's "Three Miniatures", as well as concerts and music therapy at the Eta Pi Society, Royal on Gordon, Elliott Community, and Wellington Terrace.
Mike has studied traditional and Suzuki methods privately with pianistic mentors including Judith Crocker, Valerie Candalaria, Gail Lange, Tracy Clarke-Rankine and Olga Dalli-Clews, culminating in his ARCT Diploma in Piano Performance, which he received before his high school graduation. Mike has performed in masterclasses with renowned pedagogues including James Anagnoson, Dr. Thomas Green, and Eleanor Gummer. Mike has received numerous scholarships in the Senior Piano category from the Kiwanis Music Festival of Guelph and a scholarship to study and perform chamber music with the Arthur Leblanc Quartet at the Kincardine Summer Music Festival 2008, where he performed a Haydn Flute Trio with Ryan Molzon of the Quatuor Arthur Leblanc.
In addition to Mike’s multi-faceted performances, he is an educator of piano, voice, drama, and music theory in addition to science, math, and languages. Mike holds two Honours Bachelor’s degrees in both Biomedical Science with Distinction (BScH, Guelph) and Voice Performance with High Distinction and Double Minors in Italian and German Studies (HBMus, Laurier). Mike also holds two ARCT diplomas from the Royal Conservatory in both Voice and Piano Performance. Mike speaks fluent English, Mandarin Chinese, French with proficiency in Italian, German, and Spanish. Mike is currently completing a Masters in Music in Voice and Opera Performance from the Schulich School of Music under the tutelage of dramatic tenor John Mac Master, fully funded with McGill’s Graduate Excellence and Shapiro Opera Fellowships.
Education:
- MMus ~ Masters in Music, Opera & Voice Performance (McGill University: Schulich School of Music, 2021)
- ARCT ~ Speech Arts Performance (Royal Conservatory of Music, 2021)
- HBMus ~ Honours Bachelor’s in Music (Voice Performance) with High Distinction, Double Minors in Italian & German (Sir Wilfrid Laurier University, 2019)
- ARCT ~ Voice Performance (Royal Conservatory of Music, 2015)
- BScH ~ Honours Bachelor’s in Biomedical Science with Distinction (University of Guelph, 2014)
- OSSD ~ Ontario Scholar (Centennial Collegiate and Vocational Institute, 2010)
- ARCT ~ Piano Performance (Royal Conservatory of Music, 2009)
Mike Fan accompanying singer and tuba soloist Zoe Clarke at OMFA Provincials in Hamilton, Ontario, 2017!
Selected Engagements:
- Italian Canadian Heritage Foundation
- Concerti Fulmini series
- Kultrún World Music Festival
- NUMUS
- Eden Mills Arts Festival
- Kincardine Summer Music Festival
- Ontario Federation of Music Festivals
- KW Kiwanis Music Festival
- Kiwanis Music Festival of Guelph
Selected Awards:
- 2019-20 ~ Schulich School of Music: Graduate Excellence Fellowship
- 2018-19 ~ Harold & Violet Seegmiller Award
- 2018-19 ~ Mrs. Iqbal (Bali) Badhwar Memorial Award
- 2018-19 ~ Concordia Scholarship in German
- 2017-18 ~ William Thomson Scholarship
- 2017 ~ Ontario Federation of Music Festivals: 1st Place (Advanced Speech Arts)
- 2010-2013 ~ University of Guelph Dean’s Honours List
- 2010 ~ University of Guelph Entrance Scholarship
- 2010 ~ Ontario Scholar
- 2010 ~ College Avenue Public School Scholarship
- 2008 ~ Kincardine Summer Music Festival, Chamber Music Scholarship
- 2007 ~ College Avenue School Letter
- 2005 ~ College Avenue Public School Music Award
- 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 ~ Kiwanis Music Festival of Guelph Scholarships: Senior Piano