Resounding Bauhinia Review

Resounding Bauhinia was an exclusive concert on 9th November presented by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, London as part of their HK20 series.

HK20 series has staged a number of international events throughout 2017 to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to China and the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. In the UK these events have been hosted from February to November in Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow and London. These events have showcased music, art, design, film and food, as well as the talents of individuals and groups. All the events centre around the theme: Togetherness, Progress and Opportunity.

Resounding Bauhinia showcased ten talented musicians from Hong Kong who are based in London. Music from different genres and styles was performed, ranging from traditional Chinese and jazz to Western classical. Award-winning Hong Kong-born composer, jazz pianist and conductor Raymond Yiu curated the event.

The world premiere of ‘Duophony: A City of Two Tunes’ by Austen Leung opened the concert. This song highlights East meets West as it is comprised of contrasting tunes; one Chinese and one British. Jennifer Tsang performed this new work on recorder.

Freddie Tong, in a bass-baritone voice, performed three songs. One was a British folk song ‘A Shropshire Lad’ which is actually comprised of six smaller songs detailing human life. Three of these songs were performed but the most memorable was ‘The Lads in Their Hundreds’ which was particularly appropriate given the concert was on the Thursday prior to Remembrance Day.

The eight other musicians were: Constance Chow (piano), Chiyan Wong (piano), Alex Ho (piano), Steven Williamson (saxophone), Terence Lam (violin), Francis Chik Yiu Ting (violin), Victor Sun (violia) and Chor Kai Hei (cello).

Overall, it was a nice evening listening to live music. The event was held at The Great Hall, Bishopsgate Institute, 230 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 4QH.

Website: www.hketolondon.gov.hk