Liu, Hui-Chih
E-mail:hcfranceliu@gmail.com

Specialty:
Piano Accompaniment Law,  Chamber Music,  Piano Teaching

Dean Frances Hwei-Cheh LIU
One of the rare pianists of Taiwan to receive the finest training in both European and American musical environments. She is a graduate of The National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance of Paris, where she studied with pianist Madame Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen and graduated with supreme honors. She also holds a master's degree in piano performance from the Juilliard School where she studied with pianist Jacob Lateiner. Professor Liu now keeps an active schedule as a performer while serving as the Dean/Professor of the College of the Arts of the National Dong Hwa University. She also teaches in the music department at the Taipei City University. Through her performances at the National Concert Hall, the Taipei Concert Hall, and the concert halls of Taiwan's east coast, audiences have come to know Professor Liu for colorful, committed and passionate playing combined with keen artistic intelligence. In addition to these regular performances Professor Liu remains in constant demand for special projects.
Professor Liu's career as a pianist was auspiciously launched when she was named winner of both the 1980 and 1982 Taiwan national piano competitions for young musicians. With these honors came the opportunity to study in France with the award of a government grant. She was accepted into Madame Yvonne Loriord-Messiaen's studio and studied further with Professor Michel Beroff within the 3e Cycle de Perfectionnement at the Paris Conservatory after she awarded first prize (Premier Prix) for solo performance and chamber music. Soon after this she won third prize in the International Piano Competition of the Guilde Française.

During her ten-year residency in France and America professor Liu performed in many historic concert halls including the Barbican Center in London, the Pope Palace in Avignon, the Gaveau Music Hall in Paris, the Petit Palais (Little Palace) in Paris, the Alice Tully Hall in New York, and the National Concert Hall in Taipei.

Professor Liu is in constant demand as a mentor and adjudicator as well as a performing artist. Among the many projects and competitions in Taiwan that claim Professor Liu as a guiding voice are events sponsored by the National Concert Hall, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Culture, The National Music Competition for Young Musicians, The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) Piano Competition for Young Musicians, the SinoPac Holdings Philharmonic Music Competition, the KHS Piano Competition, and the Taiwan Representative Competition for the Japan Classic Music Competition…etc.. 

Appointed as Dean of the College of the Arts of NDHU since 2015, she devoted herself more into cross-disciplinary projects which have brought out to a production of experimental theatre, the “Aquatic Poetry” in 2016 and a successful art festival “2017 NDHU x Morisaka Art Festival: the Terroir Matters.” which united NDHU with the Morisaka Developmetal Association and was supported by the Hualien County Cultural Affairs Bureau and the Hualien District Office of Forestry Bureau, Council of Agriculture. Besides exhibits and concerts, many projects are ongoing under Dean Liu’s efforts like international art camps, international exchange activities, curriculum reform and University Social Responsibilities project…etc. All will contribute to build the College of the Arts of NDHU an important art institution in Taiwan and Asia. 

Dean Liu serves in committees of several cultural and educational foundations and institutions, such as the Taiwan Foundation of Life Aesthetics, the Alliance Française in Taiwan, Taiwan-France Foundation of Culture and Education, Cultural Foundation of Hualien County and Hann Star Foundation.

Pan, Sheau-Shei

►E-mail:hiaw.yuki@gmail.com

I am living in an apartment overlooking the Hwalien harbor and the Pacific Ocean. Sometimes, ships are entering the harbor silently like dreams. The sight of the crew on the deck looking at the land is a still painting for me. In summer time, the small boats are at sea early in the morning. I wake up and open the screen to find fishermen laboring here and there, occasionally overhearing them chatting over microphones. On a moonlight night, sitting by myself on the top floor, I look at the ocean, feeling my city sailing at midnight.

German scholar Josef Pieper says, “ To remain fully human, some people among us necessarily live a ‘useless’ life of meditation.” As for leisure, he says that leisure is a mental attitude, in which his state of soul is carefree, peaceful, and meditative. An attitude toward leisure is not to release self, but to open self, to the extent of immersion. In focusing on silent meditation, we find a new flux of life bursting toward us. Isn’t it flowing out of our profoundly dreamless sleep?

Leisure is not a life of idleness, but a return to our being by stopping work which is irrelevant to our immanence, a return to our own existence, in tune with the world. A workaholic is an idle person who desperately doesn’t want to be himself, and as a result lose his ability to look at life face to face, not to mention being distracted by his deep worry.

The greatest model of cognition is not futile diligence, but a real silent meditation after a period of letting oneself going blank, which is an inspirational insight. This is a gift, without any form of being granted and without obstacles. This is the aesthetics of living in Hwalien. Only when you come to inhabit Hwalien will you realize this sort of miraculous beauty. Many great art creators in pursuit of art mystery continually meditate on the fundamental problems of their existence, and return to the hometown of their soul, Cezzane back to Provence, Gorgon back to Taihiti, Richard Long far from the metropolitan cities, to the borderline of the world. By doing so, they resuscitate a life of art. This is the power which Hwalien promises to offer to the art creators, who are immersed in meditation and authentic feelings as an inspiration of creativity.

In the world map, Taiwan is a very small island, to say nothing of Hwalien, but where else can you a more inspirational art garden? When you visit Hwalien, which was formerly called an outlying mountain area, you will find it to be ‘ the Last Pure Land’ in Taiwan, as is confirmed by the efforts of Master Cheng Yen and her Tze Chi Foundation. This paradox of existence goes to prove that with a new horizon of perspective, we could create something positive and worthwhile even under disadvantageous circumstances.

Hwalien in eastern Taiwan is a multi-racial community, with beautiful landscapes, good-quality environment, urban and rural variety, and local features. These characteristics are reflected in a variety of cultural and creative power resources, allowing different races to live in harmony and cooperation. This is called the pride of Hwalien.

The Liberal Art College, the cultural load and creator in Hwalien, wishes to create a promising future, together with the entire faculty , students, residential arts, and art lovers.