A mere 15 years ago, Hong Kong proudly escaped the shackles of British colonial rule and happily pledged its allegiance to an even more aggressive ruler in the north. There were no cries for independence or democracy, no calls for

Injuries among musicians occur mainly due to overuse. Repetition, excessive force, poor posture, awkward positions, and little respite from our wonderful profession when stirred into the mix, is a recipe for disaster. Half of the injuries seen in musicians are

Stravinsky Symphony No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 1 (1907) At age nine, Russian musician Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975) was already a music prodigy. His parents took him to his first opera performance when he was five, only to find

I read two interesting articles recently. One was about the Metropolitan Opera, whose spokesman proudly informed Times Magazine that the average age of subscribers is much younger now, “dropping from 66.4 in 2005 to 64.8 in 2011” – which, let’s

When we think about the wonders of the world, we think in terms of natural marvels or edifices. Typically, we don’t think in these terms when we describe creative artists but Janos Starker, qualifies. Virtuoso cellist, master pedagogue, articulate advocate

From Beijing to Bartók: a Talk with Tan Dun at the 2012 Hong Kong International Chamber Music Festival Tan Dun flew to Hong Kong last month to oversee rehearsals for the local premiere of Ghost Opera, the chamber work considered

Do cows understand music? Can animals appreciate the beauty of music? The term “playing music to a cow” (对牛弹琴) is an old Chinese proverb that came about when a man called Gong Mingyi played music to his cow, only to

Not so long ago, chamber music simply did not register in Hong Kong. Sure, various chamber groups were featured during the Arts Festival and on other special occasions, and student groups — primarily emerging from the Academy of Performing Arts