HK Phil x MTR Jointly Present “Phil Your MTR Ride with Music” to Fill up Passengers’ Journeys with Heavenly Music-making

12 MAR 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Meggy Cheng
Director of Marketing
Tel: (852) 2721 9035
Email: meggy.cheng@hkphil.org

Flora Fung
Media Relations and Communications Manager
Tel: (852) 2721 1585
Email: flora.fung@hkphil.org

Download here

[12March 2021, Hong Kong] Joyful classical music performed by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HK Phil) is lighting up passengers’ MTR journeys from today (12 March 2021) through to 3 April 2021. The MTR Corporation is pleased to collaborate for the first time with the HK Phil to launch the new “Phil Your MTR Ride with Music” campaign. The intention is to refresh and enlighten Hong Kong passengers during the pandemic through beautiful and enchanting melodies in the MTR stations and train compartments. Passengers can also enjoy an intriguing audio-visual journey once they step into MTR stations and take a ride on MTR trains.

The collaboration between the MTR Corporation and the HK Phil presents uplifting orchestral music in an unconventional way, and brings classical music out of the concert hall and into the public transport system. Passengers will hear familiar music performed by the HK Phil and the Orchestra’s Music Director Maestro Jaap van Zweden, and Resident Conductor Mr Lio Kuokman, when they enter station concourses1. A total of five popular works written by four renowned classical music composers – Dvořák, Mozart, Shostakovich and Wagner – will be heard.

Passengers can also enjoy an extraordinary visual experience on the concourse and through the in-train TVs. This music video showcases members of the HK Phil including Resident Conductor Mr Lio Kuokman, Concertmaster Mr Jing Wang, piccolo player Ms Linda Stuckey, and Mr Steven Chan from the administration team, along with more than 30 musicians, and offers an unprecedented look at an orchestra set up to perform the music of the famous composer Bernstein on a train and in a station. Dr Rex Auyeung, Chairman of MTR Corporation, and Mr Benedikt Fohr, Chief Executive of the HK Phil, also make special appearances in the video. Details of the campaign can be found in Appendix 1.

“The Corporation strives to enrich passengers’ travelling experience and we have been integrating art into our railway system through the ‘Art in MTR’ programme to promote art appreciation. Everyone in Hong Kong has faced unprecedented challenges over the past year. Due to the pandemic, many cultural and entertainment events have been cancelled or postponed,” said Dr Rex Auyeung, Chairman of MTR Corporation. “The power of music is without boundaries. Through this collaboration, we hope to bring classical music to our railway system and liven up the MTR journeys of our passengers.”

Mr Benedikt Fohr, Chief Executive of the HK Phil, said, “Over the past months, the HK Phil has demonstrated great resilience in facing unexpected changes. It is our mission to share classical music in any accessible way with people in the city and beyond, not just in designated venues. In addition to a wide range of online programmes which the Orchestra has curated, we are excited about the collaboration with the MTR Corporation which makes the Orchestra a companion to each and every passenger during their MTR journeys.” Mr Fohr continued, “On behalf of the HK Phil, I would also like to thank the MTR Corporation for their support to our brand-new Ambassador Fund as one of the first corporate patrons. Their support allows the Orchestra to stay connected with audiences and make our music heard everywhere at any time, including on MTR rides.”

The new “Phil Your MTR Ride with Music” video can be viewed on both the MTR and HK Phil websites, YouTube Channels, Facebook and Instagram. More information about the music presented for this campaign, behind-the-scenes video clips, together with other online performances presented by the HK Phil musicians, are available on the campaign websites at www.mtr.com.hk/en/customer/main/hkphilmusic.html and hkphil.org/media/marketing-collaborations/hkphilxmtr.

Remark:
1 Five selected classical music tracks performed by the HK Phil will be played at MTR station concourses except Racecourse, AsiaWorld-Expo, Airport, Disneyland Resort and Sunny Bay stations.

About Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HK Phil) is recognised as Asia’s foremost classical orchestra, attracting more than 200,000 music lovers every year by presenting more than 150 concerts. In 2019, the HK Phil received the prestigious Gramophone Orchestra of the Year Award – the first orchestra in Asia to receive this distinction. Maestro Jaap van Zweden has been the orchestra’s Music Director since the 2012/13 concert season and will continue to hold the position through to the end of the 2023/24 season; he is also Music Director of the New York Philharmonic. Maestro Yu Long is the HK Phil’s Principal Guest Conductor. Lio Kuokman has been appointed as Resident Conductor, effective 1 December 2020 and covering the 2020/21 and 2021/22 seasons. It is the orchestra’s mission to share its finest music-making in a more accessible way with people everywhere, not just in designated venues. Since 2020, the HK Phil has produced over 50 online programmes and has generated over 1.1 million views through recording, streaming and publishing our programmes on website and social media platforms.

For more information, please visit hkphil.org.

About MTR Corporation
Every day, MTR connects people and communities. As a recognised world-class operator of sustainable rail transport services, we are a leader in safety, reliability, customer service and efficiency.

MTR has extensive end-to-end railway expertise with more than 40 years of railway projects experience from design to planning and construction through to commissioning, maintenance and operations. Going beyond railway delivery and operation, MTR also creates and manages dynamic communities around its network through seamless integration of rail, commercial and property development.

With more than 40,000 dedicated staff*, MTR carries over 13 million passenger journeys worldwide every weekday in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Australia and the Mainland of China. MTR strives to grow and connect communities for a better future.

For more information, please visit www.mtr.com.hk.

*includes our subsidiaries and associates in Hong Kong and worldwide

About MTRCorporation “Community Connect”
“Community Connect” is the Corporation’s platform for initiatives that aims to support everyone from the young to the old while enhancing the liveability of our city. What all the programmes have in common is that they’ve been carefully developed to nurture the communities we serve, so that together we can grow and thrive in a sustainable Hong Kong. Specifically,

We invest in young people as they are our customers, future leaders, innovators, and game changers – supporting their development is an investment in our communities’ futures.
We contribute to making cities more connected and vibrant through staff volunteering, and collaborating with NGOs and social enterprises to address evolving community needs.
We enhance the travelling experience through integrating art into our station architecture and facilitating artists to stage their art-related activities or displays in our stations and malls.

Photo Captions

1. Musicians from the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra moved their stage performances from the concert hall to an MTR station to record the music video for the “Phil Your MTR Ride with Music” campaign. Click the photo below to watch the video.

2. Mr Lio Kuokman, Resident Conductor of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, and musicians from the HK Phil performed in an MTR train compartment for the first time for the music video. Photos can be downloaded from this link.

3. An array of visually striking campaign wall stickers is currently on display at MTR Tsim Sha Tsui, Admiralty, Central and Wan Chai stations.


MTR Tsim Sha Tsui Station	MTR Admiralty Station

MTR Central Station	MTR Wan Chai Station

Appendix

1. Summary of the campaign

Campaign Name	Phil Your MTR Ride with Music
Collaboration	MTR Corporation and Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
Campaign period	12 March 2021 to 3 April 2021
Campaign website	MTR: www.mtr.com.hk/en/customer/main/hkphilmusic.html HK Phil: hkphil.org/media/marketing-collaborations/hkphilxmtr
Campaign Details	1) Music @ MTR stations Five music excerpts performed by the HK Phil (see Appendix 2) are being broadcast at all MTR station concourses (except Racecourse, AsiaWorld-Expo, Airport, Disneyland Resort and Sunny Bay stations) and uploaded on campaign websites. 2) Music @ MTR trains The “Phil Your MTR Ride with Music” music video is being played on all the in-train TVs and digital channels of both MTR and HK Phil, including campaign websites and social media platforms. 3) HK Phil Online Performances @ MTR Mobile Other online performances presented by the HK Phil musicians are available on the MTR Mobile App and campaign websites.

2. Information of music pieces performed by the HK Phil in the campaign

“Phil Your MTR Ride with Music” Music Video
Music piece	Brief information
BERNSTEIN On the Town: Times Square 1944	On the Town marked Bernstein’s Broadway debut and was a hit. Bernstein defies categorisation. He possessed an abundance of gifts and was equally noted as a composer, conductor, pianist, educator and humanist. A unifying element in his music, whether for the Broadway stage or the classical concert hall, is the vivid theatricality that gives it its distinct flair.
MTR Station Music
Music piece	Brief information
DVOŘÁK Symphony no. 9, From the New World: 4th movement excerpt	Czech composer Dvořák’s Symphony no. 9, is nicknamed From the New World and in it the composer conveyed his “impressions and greetings from America”. Dvořák wrote it during his time in the US during the 1890s. Year 1892 marked the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s discovery of the “New World” and of European involvement in the Americans’ country. A National Conservatory of Music was founded in New York at that time and it was decided to invite Dvořák to become the Director. Three months after first arriving on American soil, Dvořák started work on his ninth symphony, in which he intended to make use of the new “national American music”.
MOZART Horn Concerto no. 3 excerpt	The charming Third Horn Concerto by Mozart will be played by HK Phil Principal Horn, Lin Jiang. This upbeat, light-hearted piece will surely make you want to dance.
MOZART Serenade in B flat, K. 361, Gran Partita: 7th movement	Mozart’s Gran Partita uniquely calls for 13 instruments with two pairs of horns in different keys to add greater colour and range to the work. The main theme of the seventh movement is a brisk idea making almost tiresome use of a simple two-note figure. Not in itself Mozart at his best, but the intervening episodes reveal masterly handling of this unusual but far from unlucky 13-member ensemble.
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony no. 9: 5th movement excerpt	Russian composer Shostakovich’s Symphony no. 9 is an enchanting homage to Haydn. It set out to be as grand as Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony but ended up as a light and frivolous expression of simple happiness.
WAGNER Ring Cycle Part 2 – Die Walküre:Act III ”Ride of the Valkyries” excerpt	The Ring Cycle is Wagner’s supreme operatic work, written over the span of 30 years. This masterpiece is made up of four instalments: Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried and Götterdämmerung. The HK Phil performed and completed the epic journey of the full Ring Cycle over four years from 2015 to 2018 under the baton of the Orchestra’s Music Director Jaap van Zweden, which was recorded live by Naxos. The HK Phil was named Orchestra of the Year at the 2019 Gramophone Classical Music Awards ceremony – regarded as the “Oscars of classical music” – in London October 2019, for the live recordings of the complete Ring Cycle by Wagner on the Naxos label. The HK Phil is the first Asian orchestra to receive this accolade.

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