The HK Phil Joins an All-Local Array of Composers, Musicians and Choirs to Celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre
Bravo: Sounds of Hong Kong (1 & 2 November)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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[29 October 2019, Hong Kong] An all-local array of outstanding talent joins the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HK Phil) in a programme of world premieres by four young Hong Kong composers alongside classical delights to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Two performances will take place at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall on 1 & 2 November.

Under the baton of Lio Kuokman, laureate at the Svetlanov International Conducting Competition in Paris, the HK Phil will open the concert with Shostakovich’s exhilarating Festive Overture. Recently selected as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Persons 2019 in Hong Kong, soprano Louise Kwong will sing the hauntingly beautiful aria “Io son l’umile ancella” from Cilea’s opera Adriana Lecouvreur, and the popular Neapolitan song “Non ti scordar di me”. Joining them on stage will be the prizewinning Duo Ping and Ting, playing Poulenc’s high-spirited Concerto for Two Pianos.

In keeping with the programme’s youthful theme, Brahms looks into the future with his magnificent “Song of Destiny”, featuring the voices of our very own Hong Kong Philharmonic Chorus. The Hong Kong Children’s Choir, one of the best children’s choirs in the world which celebrates its own 50th anniversary this year, concludes the programme with two endearing choral pieces arranged by local composer Wong Chun-wai.

This concert features world premieres by four Hong Kong composers Ray Leung (Chung-yin Leung), Austin Yip, Pui-shan Cheung and Joyce Tang in anticipation of the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth in 2020. This programme serves as a prelude to the HK Phil’s upcoming “Beethoven 250th” concert series, which runs across this concert season and the next.

Opened on 8 November 1989, the Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC) is celebrating its 30th Anniversary this November. As a Venue Partner of one of the city’s prime performing arts venues, the HK Phil dedicates this programme presented only by artists and groups from Hong Kong, to continue the HK Phil’s and also the HKCC’s immense contribution to the artistic growth of Hong Kong.

Bravo: Sounds of Hong Kong will be held on 1 & 2 November (Fri & Sat) at 8PM in the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall. Tickets are $480, $380, $280 and $180 and are available at URBTIX. For enquiries, please call +852 2721 2332 or visit hkphil.org.

Artists
Lio Kuokman, conductor [full biography]
Currently the Music Director of the Hong Kong New Music Ensemble, Lio Kuokman is equally sought after as a conductor, pianist and chamber musician. He has served as Assistant Conductor to Yannick Nézet-Seguin at the Philadelphia Orchestra, the first Chinese conductor in this position in the history of the orchestra. Lio, the laureate at the Svetlanov International Conducting Competition in Paris, has worked with many leading orchestras around the world including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Radio France Philharmonic, Seoul Philharmonic and Danish National Symphony Orchestra.

Louise Kwong, soprano [full biography]
Louise Kwong was a soprano at the Young Artist Programme of Rome Opera House in Italy from 2018-19. She is a graduate of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Dutch National Opera Academy, the Conservatory of Amsterdam and the Royal College of Music of London. Her operatic roles include Cio-cio-san in Madame Butterfly, Liù in Turandot, Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana, La Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro and Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte. In 2018, she sang Mimì in La Bohème, Micaëla in Carmen and The First Lady in The Magic Flute in Rome Opera House productions.

Duo Ping and Ting [full biography]
The twin sisters Lok Ping and Lok Ting Chau have earned wide recognition for their musicality and the fascinating matches of sound. The duo was top prize winners of the 64th ARD International Music Competition in Munich, the Dranoff International Two Pianos Competition, the Fourth International Piano Duo Competition, Bialystok, the Fourth San Marino International Piano Duo Competition and Grieg Á Deux International Two Piano Competition in Oslo. Their performance was exalted by the South German Post: “Duo Ping & Ting reacted precisely and harmonically together with a matching of sound in an unbelievable manner.”

The Hong Kong Children’s Choir [full biography]
Founded in 1969 with only 39 members, the Hong Kong Children's Choir is now the biggest choir in the world with over 5,000 boys and girls receiving choral, dancing, arts and craft training from the Choir. Each year, touring groups are invited to give performances overseas, spreading the message of love and peace to other parts of the world. The Choir has been well received and applauded in over 24 countries, gaining an international reputation as "one of the best children's choirs in the world" and "the Little Goodwill Singing Ambassadors from Hong Kong".

Hong Kong Philharmonic Chorus [full biography]
The Hong Kong Philharmonic Chorus was established in 1980. Over the years, it has collaborated with the HK Phil to perform a range of different works. In 2013, the Chorus undertook a new recruitment drive, and over 450 singers were attracted to attend the auditions. The first performance by the newly reformed Chorus was Handel’s Messiah. Since then, the Chorus has performed with the HK Phil in major works by composers such as, Britten, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Haydn and Mahler under renowned conductors including Lorin Maazel, Nicholas McGegan, Brett Weymark and Jaap van Zweden, amongst others.

BRAVO: SOUNDS OF HONG KONG
1 & 2 | 11 | 2019
FRI & SAT 8PM
Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall
HK$480 $380 $280 $180
Tickets are now available at URBTIX.
For ages 6 and above

Artists

Programme