A cultural ambassador devoted to musical excellence
The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra (HKCO) is a world-class orchestra that brings pride to Hong Kong through its exceptional performances of Chinese music. As a cultural ambassador, the HKCO is devoted to presenting Chinese art that reflects the pulse of the times while striving for musical excellence and innovation
Established in 1977, the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra (HKCO) is devoted to presenting exceptional Chinese art that closely reflects the pulse of the times and exudes a spirit of professionalism. The HKCO strives to push music to greater heights, making it a world-class orchestra that brings pride to the people of Hong Kong. The HKCO is frequently invited to perform at renowned international venues and art festivals, and also actively holds concerts locally that showcase the richness of Chinese musical heritage, for which the orchestra has been heralded as “a leader in Chinese ethnic music” and “a cultural ambassador of Hong Kong”.
The HKCO is the only full-sized professional Chinese orchestra in Hong Kong. It is set up in four sections, including bowed-strings, plucked-strings, wind, and percussion. Under the leadership of Artistic Director and Principal Conductor for Life Yan Huichang, the HKCO combines the concepts of tradition and innovation to create a style that is continuously fresh
and unique. The orchestra strives for musical excellence,
holding concerts that span a variety of traditional, modern, and inter-disciplinary genres.
In 2008, the HKCO was the first art group from Hong Kong to receive an invitation to give an opening performance at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. Meanwhile, the orchestra continued to fully devote itself to helping develop Chinese musical art forms by fostering new generations of composers, performers, and conductors of Chinese music, while actively working to improve musical instruments.
Cross-genre performances: A leader in Chinese ethnic music
Reputed as “a leader in Chinese ethnic music”, each year the HKCO meticulously organises an orchestral season that features a diverse range of Chinese musical performances, and regularly collaborates with art groups from a variety of genres to present programmes rich in folk culture.
This year the HKCO opened its 48th orchestral season with the concert “Morning Star Lilies Forever”, which was a project sponsored by the National Arts Fund. The concert featured performances by nearly 200 musicians from the Shaanxi Broadcasting Chinese Orchestra, the HKCO, the Shaanxi National Orchestra, and the Mizhi Wind and Percussion Ensemble. Art forms such as the Northern Shaanxi yaogu (waist drum), the suona, xintianyou, and Northern Shaanxi storytelling singing showcased the essence of the rustic folk music culture of Northern Shaanxi. The 2023-24 orchestral season opened with “The Palace of Eternal Life on a Moonlit Night” concert,
a brand-new symphonic fusion of Chinese orchestral music with Kunqu opera. The HKCO collaborated with a stage production team from Taiwan and the “prince of Kunqu” Zhang Jun performed the piece, to much critical acclaim. The concert successfully combined Kunqu opera with full accompaniment by a large Chinese orchestra, using abstract music to carry the imagination beyond the song lyrics.
In addition, the orchestra collaborated with the Hong Kong Arts Festival to launch the “Music About China” brand, which debuted works by several major composers from Greater China and abroad, promoting Chinese culture and carrying forward the essence of Chinese music. The “Music About China – A Dialogue Between the Bianzhong and Organ” concert focused on Chinese and Western instruments, creating a dialogue between the “royal sounds” of China and the West.
Promoting cultural exchange on an international stage
Since its founding, the HKCO has frequently been invited to perform at acclaimed international venues and art festivals, touring in The Netherlands, Belgium, and Australia. Since the pandemic, the orchestra has resumed its active international performance schedule, bringing Chinese music to an international platform. In early 2023, the HKCO was invited to perform the “Ode to Spring” concert at the Chinese Festival of Arts in Singapore bringing joy to audiences and helping to enliven the festivities.
The HKCO was invited to perform four concerts in Japan, touring through Tokyo, Sapporo, Hyogo, and Nagoya, and collaborating with renowned Japanese saxophonist Sumiya Miho. During this tour the HKCO also introduced audiences to its series of self-developed Eco-Huqin instruments.
The HKCO then went on to hold two other concert tours,
the “Bridging the Glorious-Dynasties of Ancient China –
Yan Huichang and HKCO” concert, which gave four performances in Mainland China, and the HKCO Australia
Tour ‘“mage China Concert – From The Dream of Red Chamber to The Terra-Cotta Warriors”, which gave three performances in Australia. Performances were well-received by audiences everywhere.
In addition to performances of high-quality Chinese music, the HKCO promotes cultural exchange of Chinese music and Hong Kong culture through a variety of international performances. Every performance features works by Hong Kong composers and overseas groups are also invited to co-host workshops in Chinese music, bringing audiences a deeper level of cultural exchange.
Promoting Chinese music through collaboration with the government and businesses
In Hong Kong, the HKCO actively works with the government and businesses to promote Chinese musical culture to people of all ages. This July, the HKCO hosted “HKSAR Anniversary Day Celebration Concert – Guo Feng”, carefully curating a musical programme of songs rich in local culture and inviting audiences to play along with the orchestra using rattle drums in The Yellow River Capriccio, Zhao Jiping’s Guo Feng, and the well-known classic Jasmine.
The HKCO has also collaborated with the Leisure and Culture Services Department to host several family-oriented concerts like “Little Kids World Music”, and “International Arts Carnival 2023 – This This This This Rice”, introducing children to Chinese musical culture in a fun environment. This October, the HKCO will also be holding the concert “Resounding Chimes – Magnificent Works in a Prosperous Age” featuring the king of instruments, the bianzhong, as we join Hong Kongers in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
In 2003, during the later SARS outbreak, the HKCO connected with our community by holding the inaugural Hong Kong Drum Festival. That year, 3,000 people gathered in Victoria Park to rekindle optimism in our communities and pray for societal and economic recovery. This event deeply resonated with locals, and the HKCO has continued holding it for more than 20 years, making it one of the programmes that has come to represent the HKCO brand.
This year, the Hong Kong Drum Festival once again receives the support of the Hong Kong Tourism Board and Chinachem, enabling it to expand the scope of the event. In December, it will host the massive “One Beat One World” Drum Carnival and 5G Live Concert in West Kowloon Art Park, in which the enormous 3.47 metre drum from the first drum festival makes another appearance. In addition to the abundance of drum performances, the event incorporates dance elements, featuring performances from famous percussion groups from around the world, Chinese intangible cultural heritage drum ensembles, and local dance troupes, and the Hong Kong Synergy 24 Drum Competition. The energy will be incredible.
The festival brings together cuisines and culture from around the world while also elevating Hong Kong’s status as a global cultural centre. At the same time, drum festival events reach people from a diverse range of backgrounds, including minorities, children, incarcerated persons, and the “Strive and Rise Teen Programme”, as they join together to experience the power of music. In addition, last year the HKCO collaborated with internationally acclaimed cruise company Resorts World Cruises and 3 Hong Kong for the first time to host the first 5G live broadcast from the helipad of a cruise ship as the “Cultural Ambassador of Hong Kong”, sharing the charm of Chinese music with audiences around the world.
Fostering the next generation of Chinese music
The development and inheritance of Chinese music requires cultivating a new generation of talent. In addition to
actively working to popularise music education, the
HKCO is devoted to fostering talent in composition, performance, and conducting. In its efforts to popularise music education, the HKCO has opened classes for a variety of instruments and shares Chinese music with instructors from different schools.
The HKCO also established the Hong Kong Young Chinese Orchestra, which recruits talented young performers from all around Hong Kong and has performed for National Day Celebration and the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Awards. Additionally, the HKCO offers internship opportunities and in recent years has welcomed numerous graduates of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, who have later progressed to become members of the orchestra.
The HKCO also provides Hong Kong composers with an environment that encourages creation, commissioning new works that span a variety of genres and forms. As of now, over 2,400 pieces have been commissioned. Twenty-six years ago, the HKCO compiled compositions into the “Music from the Heart” compilation.
This year the compilation extends to include middle-school students. To develop conducting talent, the HKCO conductor Yan Huichang, recognising that the field needed official conductors of Chinese music, established the International Conducting Competition for Chinese Music in 2011, which was hosted for the fourth time this year. The competition collaborates with orchestras from various regions to cultivate top level talent in Chinese music conducting. Additionally, the HKCO works with numerous music academies.
This July, the HKCO signed an agreement with Huazhong University of Science and Technology that gives students and instructors an opportunity to rehearse or intern with the HKCO; the orchestra’s principal players also hold masterclasses at schools to encourage exchanges and collaboration between musical talent.
Improving instruments: Finding innovation in tradition
In addition to keeping Chinese musical traditions alive, the HKCO strives to innovate and continually improve. Traditionally, the face of erhu is constructed using python skin, which causes the instrument’s sound to change slightly in different environments.
In 2004, the HKCO began researching ways to replace the python skin with recycled PET polyester fibre membrane for the purpose of environmental protection and used scientific calculations to redesign the soundbox and vastly increase the instrument’s physical function.
Today, the Eco-Huqin series of instruments has entered its third generation and includes the gaohu, erhu, zhonghu, Gehu, and Bass-Gehu, creating a sound that is more stable, more penetrating, and more uniform during orchestral performances. The Eco-Huqin series of instruments have given over 1,700 performances and are now a nationally patented intellectual property that has won several awards for environmental protection.
Receiving the Asia Excellence Brand Award this year affirmed the HKCO’s long-term commitment to excellence and our mission to promote Chinese musical culture. As we look towards the future, the HKCO will continue to combine the concepts of tradition and innovation to create a style that is continuously fresh and unique, bringing our community even richer programmes through the form of a large Chinese orchestra.
