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27
Tue
Oct
2026
19:30
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01
Tue
Dec
2026
19:30 |
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$80 |
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AC2, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre |
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Music
Lecture Series: Hong Kong Music Stories Series – All to start from the Libraries
The story behind building music archives has no end.
It has been a quarter of a century since the Hong Kong Central Library launched the Hong Kong Music Collection Campaign in 2001. This race against time to preserve Hong Kong's musical heritage may seem to be simply for the city's cultural legacy, but more importantly, it has been a journey of heartwarming human connections. Working with musicians of earlier generations and their families has been as much a lesson in life as in music. Along the way have some moments of joy and sorrow, meetings and farewells, and the realities of both separation and loss. Above all, the work has taught us patience, respect and gratitude, as well as the wisdom of letting things take their natural course. We have learned to devote ourselves wholeheartedly to what we do, without clinging onto things that are slipping away. When the time comes to let go, gain and loss alike cease to weigh upon us. Such is the way of life: what comes, what goes; we say goodbye, we say hello, all in good time.
Looking back over the past twenty-five years, we can recall how the work of collecting Hong Kong's musical archives has brought its share of challenges and rewards. Yet the encounters and friendships forged with generations of musicians have woven together a wealth of touching stories that form part of Hong Kong's musical heritage. Through this lecture series, we pay tribute to the musicians who go before us, with fondness and respect.
27 Oct 2026 (Tue)
Lecture 1: The Serious and the Witty Woo Man-sum
Guest Speaker: Wong Chi-wah
Woo Man-sum (1910-1963) was one of Hong Kong's leading composers and librettists of Cantonese operatic songs in an earlier generation. He was born into a family steeped in literary and theatrical traditions: his father was a private tutor, while his two elder sisters were active in the Cantonese opera theatre. Immersed in the performing arts from an early age, Woo developed a keen interest in theatre and began writing Cantonese opera libretti for famous stars in his youth. He later composed lyrics for film songs, producing a remarkably diverse body of work that ranged from the serious to the witty.
3 Nov 2026 (Tue)
Lecture 2: The Music Dreams of Chen Ning-chi
Chen Ning-chi (1940-2025) was a Chinese national born in Indonesia, but he returned to China with his family in 1953. He graduated from the Central Conservatory of Music in 1965, where he studied Composition under the distinguished composer Du Mingxin. He settled in Hong Kong in 1973, and later he once served as Assistant Music Director and Composer-in-Residence of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. In 2015, he received the CASH (Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong) Hall of Fame Award in recognition of his distinguished contribution to music. Chen passed away in Hong Kong in 2025, leaving behind a legacy of more than 500 compositions, the majority of which are now in the collection of the Hong Kong Central Library.
10 Nov 2026 (Tue)
Lecture 3: The Maestro of Cantonese Music, Loo Kah-chi
Guest Speaker: Ip Sai-hung
Loo Kah-chi (1917-1996) was a leading figure in Cantonese music. He graduated from the Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou where he studied Law. After the Second World War, he settled in Hong Kong, where he was active in various aspects of music, from accompanying singers in Cantonese song salons in teahouses, to writing film scores, appearing on radio and in concerts, and composing music. From the 1960s onwards, he led Radio Television Hong Kong’s Cantonese Music Ensemble and the Lung Cheung Opera Troupe for three decades, making significant contributions to the development of Chinese music and Cantonese opera in Hong Kong. Many of Loo's autograph manuscripts are now preserved in the Hong Kong Central Library.
17 Nov 2026 (Tue)
Lecture 4: Tong Leung-tak and the Legacy of Jiangnan Music
Guest Speaker: Koo Sing-fai
Tong Leung-tak (1938-2010) was born in Shanghai, where he was trained in the erhu and pipa from an early age. At a youthful age, he performed Jiangnan sizhu music with members of his family as part of the "Tong Family Ensemble", which soon gained a considerable reputation in Shanghai. After settling in Hong Kong in 1977, he was Concertmaster of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra for a year, before he joined the Music Office. He later taught erhu at The Chinese University of Hong Kong and The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, having trained numerous outstanding students and thus contributing significantly to the development of Chinese music education in Hong Kong.
24 Nov 2026 (Tue)
Lecture 5: Chen Dieyi the Poetic Lyricist
Guest Speaker: Chan Nicholas Louis
Chen Dieyi (1908-2007) was a native of Jiangsu Province. He was one of the most celebrated Chinese lyricists of the twentieth century. At the age of 15, he began his career as a scribe for a newspaper before founding such publications as Star Daily, Wanxiang Magazine and Chunqiu. He rose to prominence in 1945 through his film lyrics. After settling in Hong Kong in 1952, he devoted himself to editing, writing, screenwriting and songwriting. His best-known lyrics include Evening Bells at Nanping, Lover's Tears and I Have a Love Story. In 1996, he received the CASH Hall of Fame Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to music. He passed away in Hong Kong in 2007, bequeathing his manuscripts and other works to the Hong Kong Central Library.
1 Dec 2026 (Tue)
Lecture 6: “Love is Like a Dream”, all about Pong Chow-wah
Pong Chow-wah (1928-1991) was a Hong Kong composer, lyricist and screenwriter. He entered the film industry in 1955 and went on to write the screenplays for more than 30 films. Among his best-known stage works is the Cantonese opera Twelve Beauties and Twelve Balustrades. From the 1960s, he was Production Manager of Fung Hang Records before joining Rediffusion Television in the 1970s, where he contributed to the production of variety programmes. During this period, he also wrote Cantonese lyrics for the theme songs of a number of Japanese television dramas, including Robotan and Kamen Rider. His 1960s hit Love Is Like a Dream enjoyed a remarkable revival in the 1990s and has since become a beloved Cantopop classic.
(Information provided by the speaker)
(English translation provided by KCL Language Consultancy Ltd)
Conducted in Cantonese. Each lecture will run for about 1 hour and 30 minutes. Free seating.
The programme does not represent the views of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.
The presenter reserves the right to change the programme.
TICKETING
DATE VENUE PRICE 27.10.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
03.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
10.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
17.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
24.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
01.12.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
AC2, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre
$80
DATE27.10.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
03.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
10.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
17.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
24.11.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
01.12.2026 (Tue)
19:30
19:30
PRICE
$80