Four Decades of Vibrant Musical Life

Hong Kong has, for many years, been considered by some as a cultural desert. The feeling has been that, in a place where people have comparatively shallow roots, it would be more unlikely for musical and cultural life to flourish. But to what extent can it really be said that the people of Hong Kong are by and large only business orientated, and hence totally uninterested and uninvolved in cultural activities?

To ascertain an answer to this, eight faculty members, Drs. Chan Sau-yan, Chan Wai-kwong, Chan Wing-wah, Joseph Lam, Daniel Law, Greta Olson, Harrison Ryker, and J. Lawrence Witzleben of the Music Department undertook a three year project in 1989 to study various topics related to musical changes in Hong Kong between 1950 and 1990. The project won a competitive grant of HK$300,000 from the Research Grants Council.

Data Depict a Different Picture

The project was received enthusiastically by various circles of society. In the course of three years from 1989 to 1992, numerous valuable musical data were collected. The findings are rich and present sufficient evidence to prove that Hong Kong did indeed enjoy a diverse and vibrant musical life in the last 40 years. Some of the valuable materials collected regarding musical changes in Hong Kong between 1950 and 1990 include:

§ Newspaper cuttings: There are approximately 10,000 articles from the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong Standard and Wah Kiu Yat Po on music related items such as concert reviews, interviews with artists, conductors, concert organizers, as well as articles on notable musical events.

§ Material on Cantonese opera: This consists of 65 operatic scripts including masterpieces such as The Courtship of the Phoenix by the Side of Lake Peach Blossom, The Swallow Returns, Adultery Is the Chief of All Crimes,etc., together with over 1,000 photographs and slides, and over 60 hours of video and audio tapes featuring both theatrical and ritual performances.

§ Hong Kong composers collection: There are over 1,200 musical scores written by about 80 Hong Kong composers, collected with the permission of the composers. Some of these are original manuscripts. The music collected is mostly of a serious nature, covering various kinds of musical styles.

§ Information on musical activities: This consists of records on activities conducted by various music organizations throughout the 40 years, including photocopies and noted extracts of concert brochures published by organizations such as the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra.

Although the aim of this project is to collect only musical materials relevant to the 40 years between 1950 and 1990, its implications are more far ranging, and its impact is manifold. It points directly to the cultural identity of Hong Kong which embraces the essence of both the East and the West. It results in a collection which is unprecedented in both its historical depth and comprehensive scope. The research shows that music workers of Hong Kong on the one hand try to preserve the traditional genres and on the other, strive to establish a modern musical culture with new compositions. The findings of this project enable scholars to understand the musical development of Hong Kong from a new perspective.

All the materials collected by the researchers form an important research basis and enable the setting up of a Hong Kong Music Archive which can be used by local and international scholars to conduct further research in music analysis, ethnomusicology, anthropology, sociology and all branches of Sinology.

The project has already facilitated a number of publications and important international presentations by members of the CUHK Music Department. Examples are separately listed in table I.

The pool of musical data are currently kept in the Music Department, and are easily accessible to staff and students of this university as well as researchers of other institutions.

Dr. Chan Wing-wah, one of the organizers of the project, has suggested that the collected data be computerized in order to enable a more efficient usage. This however has not yet been possible as the funds allocated by the Research Grants Council have already been exhausted. But this is not reason enough to stall further work vis-à-vis the project and its data, for the project continues to draw the attention of people from different walks of life, and musicians and collectors continue to express their faith in it by donating related materials to the collection. The major contributors to this project believe that a lot of work remains to be done with the present material, and they will continue with research in their respective areas of specialization.

No country or city in history has been prosperous and yet lacking in a firmly established artistic and cultural environment. This research project has been timely and has provided a new way of viewing and understanding Hong Kong's unique and vibrant musical life.