Anna Heller plays “Cosmic Love” by Man-Ching Yu Donald from his suite in tonal and minimalist style “Streams of Consciousness” for piano (2022 – 23). This suite consists of 12 movements.
Donald Yu about this movement: “Love is the prominent foundation of cosmic consciousness. It also reflects the harmonies of being. The perception of the cosmos and its different entities are bounded by God’s love or Unconditional Love. Throughout the movement, poignant and sentimental melodies dominate, and profound subtleties of love and longing are expressed.”

About the composer: Donald Yu, Hong Kong born composer and pianist.

His orchestral piece “Unraveling” was awarded gold double medal (Awards of Excellence) in two categories-Best Contemporary Classical and Composition of the 2022 Global Music Awards. His music is described by Fanfare Magazine as “forming an arresting and personal intermixing of tonal and atonal languages, with the musical colors and gestures of his native country infiltrating the mix.” (2012)

Yu is quite prolific and has composed nearly two hundred compositions. His music has been performed at various international festivals and events in more than 20 countries with 50 cities throughout the North and South America, Europe, and Asia such as the 2022 Contrasts International Contemporary Music Festival, the International Review of Composers (Serbia), the EurAsia International Music Festival (Yekaternburg Russia), the International Festival of Modern Art: Two Days and Two Nights of New Music, the International Kiev Music Fest, and many others; his music has been performed by Lviv National Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Lugansk Philharmonic, Chernivtsi Philharmonic, Uzhgorod Philharmonic with chorus, Opera Hong Kong Chorus with Hong Kong Chamber Orchestra, Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra (U.S.), etc. His music is exclusively published by Donemus (Netherland) and Universal Edition (Austria), other publishers including Babelscores (France), Edizioni Sconfinarte (Italy), Scherzo Editions (Portugal), Zimbel Press (U.S.), Da Vinci Edition (Japan); most of his recordings are exclusively available at Donemus Records, and other labels include Phasma Music, Ablaze, Albany and Zimbel Records as well as Association New Music (Ukraine).

Yu earned a BM degree from Baylor University in 2004, studying piano performance with renowned pianist Krassimira Jordan of the Russian piano school. In 2010, he earned a PhD in composition and music theory with the support of a full postgraduate research assistantship at Hong Kong Baptist University. He also studied composition with stipendium at the International Summer Academy Mozarteum Salzburg with a diploma in Austria in 2007 and holds Fellowship in composition from Trinity College of London; since 2007 he has received various awards and honors from different organizations including ASCAPlus awards, Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fellowship, and the 2014 Newly Published Music Competition Honorable Mention (U.S.), “Surrealistic Soundscapes” (2012)-Best Contemporary Classical Album” of the Clouzine International Music Awards.

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