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The prolific King's Harmonica Quintet will perform with the Hong Kong Youth Chinese Orchestra (HKYCO) in the concert "Legends", to be held at 3pm on January 15 (Sunday) at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall.
Organised by the Music Office of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department to mark the occasion of the HKYCO's annual concert, guest artists the King's Harmonica Quintet will join the orchestra in performing "Beautiful Clouds Chasing the Moon Rhapsody" and "Rumanian Rhapsody No.1 in A Major".
Under the batons of conductors Tsui Ying-fai and Kwok Kin-ming, the HKYCO will also perform a repertory depicting the colourful and sentimental legendary tales "Autumn Execution" by Doming Lam; "Legend of the Lion Guard" by Su Wen-cheng; the Shanxi wind and percussion "Triumphant March", "Goddess of the Mountain" by Xiao Bai; and "A Solitary Boat Rowing along the Misty Sea" by Zhang Xiaofeng.
The King's Harmonica Quintet was established in 1987 by five King's College alumni who had earlier played together in the King's College Harmonica Band. They pioneered the commissioning of new works for a harmonica quintet. The original repertoire for the harmonica quintet has since then been expanded to almost 30 pieces. Since 1996, the quintet has appeared regularly at the Asia Pacific Harmonica Festivals as adjudicators, seminar speakers and guest performers.
The quintet made history in Hong Kong by winning the champions' award at the World Harmonica Championship in Germany. They also led the formation of the Hong Kong Harmonica Association in 2002, which hosted the large-scale 5th Asia Pacific Harmonica Festival 2004 in Hong Kong. The quintet and its members have performed in nearly 20 countries in Asia Pacific, Europe and USA. The quintet also collaborated with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, the Chinese Orchestra of Hong Kong and the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong from 2002 to 2008.
Established in 1978, the HKYCO has around 90 members. The orchestra has taken part in numerous local performances and major festivals, including the 47th National Day Celebration Concert, the 1997 Reunification Spectacular and the Music of the Dragons concert in 2002. In 2000 and 2007, it performed during exchange programmes in Beijing, Xian, Nanjing, Wuxi and Jiangyin. In 2011, the orchestra embarked on its premiere tour to Taiwan and received high acclaim for its performance at the Contemporary Chinese Orchestra Festival.
Tickets priced at $80, $60 and $40 are now available at all URBTIX outlets. Half-price concessions are available for full-time students, senior citizens, people with disabilities and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance recipients.
Credit card telephone booking can be made at 2111 5999 and Internet booking can be made at www.urbtix.hk. For programme enquiries, please call 2796 1003 or 2582 5311 or visit the website at www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/MusicOffice/en/events_2011_12_13.php.
Ends/Friday, January 6, 2012
Issued at HKT 13:15
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