Now that the excitement surrounding the premiere of my latest orchestral work Rong has passed, it feels like a great time to reflect on my experience working with the HKPO for the first time. Rong was commissioned by the HKPO especially for their concert in Shanghai as part of Hong Kong's World Expo programme, and the performance took place about two weeks ago. By now the orchestra would have completed the rest of their China Tour, and would have since performed many other different pieces of music. What for me the culmination of months of work was just another day at work for the musicians, and such is the reality a composer encounters at most premieres.
I was fortunate enough to have the chance to tour with the orchestra this time. The schedule was pretty tight, but I did manage to visit a few places in the city and had some great food there. I got to catch up with some old friends in the orchestra I already knew from my time at the HKAPA many years ago, as well as meeting some other musicians during the trip.
As expected, rehearsal time was limited, but Maestro Edo de Waart did a fantastic job and found time to work on some finer details in my piece. On the night, I could not have asked for a better performance from the orchestra. After a slightly nervous wait following the opening pieces by Gabrieli, the orchestra began my piece with bursts of energy. They navigated through my piece with ease, capturing the many different moods I intended in what is essentially a series of my musical impressions of Hong Kong.
There was one last surprise for the audience right at the end of the six-minute piece. A few of the brass players were instructed to switch on a selection of cheap electric toys commonly found in local markets in Hong Kong at a specific quiet moment. It was designed to recreate the atmosphere of a busy market, acting as a light-hearted relief. This worked well in rehearsals in terms of the sound effect intended but I was anxious to find out what the reaction would be like with the live audience. Luckily, I am happy to report a few laughters among the audience, and it proved particularly popular with the young children I have been told!
I had the chance to talk to a few of the audience members after the concert, and am glad that the response was all very positive. Some even asked me when the orchestra would perform this piece in Hong Kong as they thought it captured Hong Kong well musically.
After many years of being an audience of the HKPO, it was a very special moment for me personally to finally have the chance to compose for them and hear them performing my own music, not least at such a high-profile occasion alongside Beethoven's Symphony No.9! It was a pleasure working with their musicians and staff, and I look forward to working with the HKPO again in May 2011, when Perry So will be conducting my 23-minute Unlocking from 2008 in concert. Take care for now.
Lam Fung
