Short Bio
Elliot Ho Yat Leung (IPA: eliːət lœŋ) is a composer who seeks to blend the five human senses through poignant musical storytelling. He is the youngest recipient of the prestigious Huabiao Award for music. The South China Morning Post observed Leung as a composer who writes “evocatively with flair and romance.”
His music has been described as “audio-graphically visual” (The Standard) “invigorates life” (Film Inquiry) and “vibrantly energetic” (Classical Music UK). His music has been performed by leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Leung has collaborated with many renowned conductors, such as Daniel Harding, Long Yu and Gerard Salonga. Leung’s notable concert works include “Lunar Overture,” (New York Philharmonic Premiere), Symphony No. 1 “The Metaverse,” (Hong Kong Philharmonic Premiere, Sony Classical Release), “Wuxia,” (Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Premiere). Furthermore, Leung has received commissions from notable organisations such as the United States Department of State, the Asia Society and the TTA Academy of China.
Leung is also known for his celebrated film scores, recent releases include his Hollywood debut “Freelance” (John Cena/Alison Brie), the highest-grossing Chinese film of all time “The Battle at Lake Changjin” (Wu Jing/Jackson Yee) and Playstation title “Six Days in Fallujah” (Victura/Highwire). Leung’s score for "Operation Red Sea” was broadly praised by critics for elevating Chinese film music to a world class standard. As of November 2023, his films have grossed $2.2 billion USD worldwide. Currently, Leung is working on the sequel to Operation Red Sea, Operation Leviathan.
Born in Hong Kong (1995), Leung received early musical training at the age of 5. He was a gifted child case study in The Oxford Handbook of Children's Musical Cultures. He furthered his studies in the United States when he turned 17 and attended the Wheaton Conservatory on scholarship. He later decided to give up his academic pursuits at the University of Southern California after being scouted into the film industry. During his time in the U.S., he was mentored by renowned composer Martin O’ Donnell. In 2022, he was named on the Forbes 30 under 30 list and is a 4-time ASCAP Music Award recipient.
Full Bio
Elliot Ho Yat Leung (lœŋ) is a composer who seeks to blend the five human senses through poignant musical storytelling. He is the youngest recipient of the prestigious Huabiao Award. The South China Morning Post observed Leung as a composer who writes “evocatively with flair and romance.”
His music has been described as “audio-graphically visual” (The Standard) and “invigorates life” (Film Inquiry). His music has been performed by leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Leung has collaborated with many renowned conductors, such as Daniel Harding, Long Yu and Gerard Salonga. Leung has also collaborated with many notable conductors, such as Long Yu, Daniel Harding, Gerald Salonga and Huang Yi. In 2022, he was named on the Forbes 30 under 30 list. Furthermore, Leung has received commissions from notable organisations such as the United States Department of State, the TTA Academy of China and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office.
His “Symphony No. 1, The Metaverse,” premiered and recorded by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra on May 7th to a full house in the Concert Hall of the Hong Kong Culture Centre. The piece was then released by Sony Classical. In its review, South China Morning Post wrote, “Citing traditional influences such as Jean Sibelius, Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Rachmaninoff, Leung's music has flair and romance in weeping passages consisting of chromatic, mysterious, musical themes.”
“Lunar Overture,” premiered by the New York Philharmonic in 2024 was described as a piece that “encapsulates the spirit of New Year festivities.” The piece broke the 12 year-long (1 Lunar New Year Cycle) Lunar New Year concert tradition of opening with Spring Festival Overture to a full house audience in David Geffen Hall。
Following the premiere of “Wuxia,” a 5-movement symphonic poem premiered to an in-house and online audience of 40,000 people, critic Mao Yiming wrote, “Wuxia is a piece that allows the audience to experience the charm of Jin Yong’s martial arts. The silhouettes of landscapes, scabbards and flying knives make people feel as if they are in the martial arts world, and can resonate with the characters in the novel. Leung’s musical talent and profound exploration of Chinese culture makes him a unique representative among contemporary composers. His musical works often contain rich emotional layers and a strong sense of imagery. Through constant attempts at multi-dimensional integration and innovation, not only does he demonstrates the charm of Chinese culture on the international stage, but also allows the world to hear the power of contemporary Chinese music in depth.”
Leung also writes extensively for visual media, and is especially known for his symphonic film scores most notably for the highest grossing Chinese film of all time, The Battle at Lake Changjin. In 2023, Elliot broke into Hollywood composing the score for Freelance (dir: Pierre Morel) starring John Cena and Alison Brie. Leung’s prowess in combining electronics and symphonic colours are showcased in his other box office breaking films such as Operation Red Sea, Water Gate Bridge and The Rescue. In particular, his Operation Red Sea score was broadly praised by critics for elevating Chinese film music to a world class standard. As a result, the “Operation Red Sea Concert Suites” has been widely performed to sold-out concert audiences. In video games, his emotive storytelling saw him composing for the highly anticipated first-person shooter Six Days in Fallujah by Victura to be released on Playstation, Xbox and PC. Other popular video game titles include Dragonheir: Silent Gods by Bytedance, LifeAfter: Season 3 by Netease Games and Honour of Kings by Tencent Games which he won two Game Audio Network Guild Awards for "Best Audio for a Casual or Social Game" and “Best Main Theme.” Other than his symphonic film works, his musical versatility in chamber music also saw him composing for Disney+ series Anita and comedy Great Expectations. As of November 2023, his films have grossed $2.2 billion USD worldwide.
Leung’s works have been performed and recorded at many notable venues, such as the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, the Jaguar Shanghai Symphony Hall and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Leung also wrote the iconic jingle to Radio Television 1 Hong Kong, broadcasted every hour daily in the city.
Leung received early musical training at age 5 in the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts. He was a gifted child case study in The Oxford Handbook of Children's Musical Cultures. As a result of his musical excellence, he was selected to perform in the CCTV show "Charming China Youth Arts Festival (亞洲藝術盛典 · 魅力中國)". He went on to study music composition at the Wheaton Conservatory of Music on scholarship where he was taught and mentored by renowned composer Martin O’Donnell. He is a 4-time ASCAP Music Award recipient.
