Composition Highlights
Orchestra/Large Ensemble
Splinter for double bass and orchestra (2022) 10'
2 +picc, 2, 2, 2+contra, 2, 2, 2, 1, perc (bass drum, 3 tom toms, 5 temple blocks, sus cymbal, crotales), hrp, solo DB, strings
Recording
Unveiling for orchestra (2022) 7'
2 +picc, 2, 2+bass cl, 2+contra, 4, 2, 3, 1, timp, 2 perc (b.drum, tam-tam, 5 temple blocks, 5 wood blocks, sus cym, snare, 3 triangle), strings
Recording
Carved in Gorton Stone for sinfonietta (2022) - 9'
Commissioned by Royal Philharmonic Society for performance by Manchester Camerata
Vanishing Point for erhu and symphony orchestra (2016) ca 11'
2+picc, 2+cor, 2+bass, 2+contra, 4, 3, 3, 1, timp, perc, harp, str
Recording
Opera/Music Theatre
Ye Xian: A Story Untold music theatre piece for counter-tenor and five players (2025) ca 70'
Chamber Music
Gambit for six players (2021) 7'
Flute, Oboe, Bass Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Violoncello
Recording
Spiralling scrolls for trio (2019) 15'
Clarinet, Viola, and Yangqin
Recording
Flower Sermon for string quartet (2024) 8'
Our Common Wealth for string quartet (2021) ca 6'
Recording
Vocal
The Glass Eye for counter-tenor and piano (2023) 50'
An English Country House for soprano and piano (2025) 25'
Above the White Island for tenor and piano (2020) ca 7'
Recording
Choral
tah dah! for choir (2021) 2'
SATB
Recording
Hush for choir (2021) 7'
Large Choir
Recording
Untold
Untold is a new music theatre work by Alex Ho, co-created with Olivier Award-winning choreographer Julia Cheng and premiered in Bruges and Rotterdam in 2023.
Untold is written for 6 performers: counter-tenor, dancer, piano, flute, yangqin and percussion. It tells the 9th century Tang Dynasty story of Ye Xian, a tale with strong similarities to the European fairytale Cinderella. Untold weaves the narrative of Ye Xian with modern-day stories exploring British-Chinese identity, through music and movement.
WATCH: Untold trailer
PRESS
"an ingenious musical and theatrical dramaturgy… The most exciting moments of the fairy tale are interrupted by the performers' own stories, their experiences of racism, but also of misunderstanding within their own family.... Alex Ho, pianist and conductor, composed the often atonal or Eastern pentatonic, but also evocative and sonorous music. " theater krant, 21 May 2023
“in this award-winning composition, the score ingeniously intertwines two cultures: the timbre is Chinese, whilst the music leans towards the European avant-garde... the musicians go far beyond simply playing their instruments here. They act with graceful gestures, and run and jump with exceptional agility... More than an eye-pleasing, intriguing and convincing performance, most importantly it is deeply moving on a human level.” pzazz theater, 29 April 2023
"If you know Cinderella, you know Ye Xian. Predating the European fairytale, Ye Xian follows a path familiar to many in search of a place to belong. Untold reveals new twists conjuring to life Ye Xian's story of the transnational journey between and beyond different cultures. Co-created by composer Alex Ho and creative director and choreographer Julia Cheng, Untold weaves together movement and music into an intricate tapestry of colours, sounds, memories, and dreams, imagining a more hopeful future for Ye Xian and those who come after." Alex Ho
Untold is winner of the Fedora Prize 2023.
Duration: 70 minutes
Premiered at: Concertgebouw Brugge All Arias Festival and O. Festival Rotterdam in Spring 2023
Supported by: FEDORA Platform and The Silver Company, Britten Pears Arts, PRS Foundation, RPS Drummond Fund, Tax Shelter of the Belgian Federal Government and Cronos Invest.
Alex Ho interviewed for BBC Radio 3 Free Thinking
In 2022, Alex Ho was interviewed for BBC Radio 3’s Free Thinking about Chinese identity in contemporary classical music. His interview begins at 22 minutes.
The Critics' Circle'He combines a coherent individual voice with a breadth of styles, genres and instrumental disciplines, all fired by the spark of his imagination, combining his Chinese heritage and Western Classical form in a compelling and individual way.'
Schmopera'Purposefully nebulous, refusing to be slotted into any one genre.'