The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra was founded in 1977, as Hong Kong's only professional Chinese orchestra, it entered its twenty-fifth season in September 2001, one day after the New York City terrorist attacks. Under the leadership of former Music Directors - Ng Tai-kong, Kuan Nai-chung, Henry Shek and the incumbent Yan Huichang, the Orchestra has been undertaking the mission of promoting Chinese music. Its performance format and programming strategy reflect its Chinese cultural roots. It has a repertoire that includes both traditional folk music and contemporary full scale works, in the spirit of exploring new frontiers in music and experimenting with new techniques and styles.

Since 1998, the Orchestra has been presenting theme concerts such as Chinese Music Select, Music From the Heart, as well as other themes such as on regional music, musical instruments, concerts for festive occasions etc.. Besides regular public concerts, the Orchestra also offers free outreach and student concerts on a regular basis for all sectors of the community. Effort in promoting Chinese music through multimedia saw the Orchestra collaborating with the Education Department and the Music Office in 1998 for the production of Education Television programmes on Chinese music, and with the Education Department and the Hong Kong Institute of Education in 1999 for the production of a CD-Rom entitled The Huqin. In order to share the beauty of Chinese music with those keenly interested in the art form, the Orchestra established the "Friends of Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra" in March 1998.

Up to the present, the Orchestra has given eight hundred performances and over a thousand outreach concerts, and has given regular overseas tours. The places visited include Australia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Macau, Canada, the United States of America and the Netherlands. Between 1987 and 1989, the Orchestra released four recordings which were entitled The Butterfly Lovers Gaohu Concerto/Journey to Lhasa, Ambush/Moonlight over Spring River, Lady General Mu Guiying Leads Her Army to War and Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. A new series of recording began in October 1999 with Tang Capriccio, which was produced in conjunction with the Hong Kong Composers' Guild. The latest releases are Encore and Touching that Mutual Chord in February and May 2000. In February 1997, the Orchestra organized an international conference on the development of Chinese music, entitled "Retrospect and Development of Modern Chinese Orchestra" at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. Experts and scholars attending came from Hong Kong, mainland China and overseas. Many enlightening views were raised on the occasion. In March 2000, the Orchestra took Chinese music development to new heights by organizing two epoch-marking events, International Competition for Chinese Orchestral Composition 2000 and Chinese Orchestral Composition Symposium.

The Orchestra has four sections: bowed-strings, plucked-strings, wind and percussion. The instruments include traditional and modernized Chinese instruments as well as suitable western instruments. The Orchestra has expanded rapidly during its existence of more than twenty years. The establishment also increased from fifty musicians in 1977 to the present eighty-five, including one Concertmaster/Assistant Conductor, one Deputy Concertmaster, two Section Leaders, sixteen Principals, ten Assistant Principals and fifty-eight musicians.

YAN Huichang
Music Director and Conductor

-YAN Huichang, a National Class One Conductor in China, has been the Music Director of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra since June 1997. Yan has, of course, been involved in the development of the orchestra through its incorporation period and in the extensive planning necessitated by this special season - The Silver Anniversary of the orchestra.

-Yan received five years of professional training in Chinese music conducting at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he was a pupil of the renowned conductor XIA Feiyun, famous composers HU Dengtiao and HE Zhanhao. After graduating with a Bachelor's Degree with distinction in 1983, he was at various times of his career Principal Conductor-cum-Artistic Director of the Central Folk Orchestra of China, Guest Conductor and Professor of the China Conservatory of Music; Conductor of the Philharmonic Orchestra and Folk Orchestra of the Beijing Concert Hall, Conductor and Head of the Research Centre, Department of Operatic Music of the Shaanxi Academy of the Arts, and Resident Guest Conductor of Kaohsiung City Chinese Orchestra of Taiwan. He is presently Executive Committee member of the China Orchestra Music Society.

-As a conductor who has worked with all professional Chinese orchestras in Beijing, Shanghai, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong, Yan has won the acclaim of the music circles in China and abroad for his artistic and conducting talents. The symphonic piece, Buddha's Story, and A Collection of Modern Erhu Music conducted by him won the Gold Tripod Award in Taiwan. In addition to playing an active role on the Chinese music scene, Yan has also been involved in music of other genres. Under his baton, and in collaboration with the famous composer ZHAO Jiping, the Symphony Orchestra section of the Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China made the soundtrack recordings for such award winning films as Red Lanterns Hanging High, Ballad of the Yellow River, and Five Girls and a Rope. In 1992, he emigrated to Singapore and was the Music Director of Naxos Pte Ltd. He was also highly commended for his conducting in a Chinese music recording provided by BMG of Japan and played by the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra in 1994.

-Yan is also actively engaged in composition. His representative works include the symphonic poem The Sound of Water which won a Class One Prize in the Composition Contest of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and Class Two Prize in the Third National Music Composition Competition; the Pipa solo work Nostalgia which won the Class One Award of the First National Pipa Contest of Contributing Works. Between 1992 and 1993, Yan wrote Clouds, The Moon, A Music Journey on the Yellow River and Song of the General, all of which where made into recordings for release.

FENG Shao-xian

- Feng is not only an excellent performer, but also an innovator one the Yueqin, having changed the fret into twelve equal temperaments. He has also authored the publication, "The Performing Techniques of the Yueqin" and composed many Yueqin solo pieces such as Across the River, Oroqen's Bonfire among others. The Media has referred to him as the Yueqin Master and the Yueqin Poet.

- In 1996 he held a "FENG Shao-xian Yueqin Recital" in Hong Kong. He was also Temporary Guest Soloist and taught in the Kaohsiung City Chinese Orchestra in September 2000. FENG is also a member of the Chinese Musician Association, a Director of the China Folk Orchestra Society, Vice-Charman of Heilongjiang Musicians Association, a National Class One Performer and a recipient of the State Council's Special Award.

CAO Yan-zhen

- Cao is a renowned singer of folk songs, as well as a National Class One Performer. She graduated from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Cao is the recipient of numerous prizes, among them the National "Gold Album" Prize, "Ten Most Popular Singers of China" Prize, the First Prize winner of the "National New Radio Songs Competition" and First Prize winner of the "Sound of the Strait" Works Competition.

- Cao has given folk song recitals in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Suzhou, Japan and Singapore and has toured and performed in Europe, Asia, Australia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. She was praised by the foreign media and referred to in the press as the "Chinese Swallow" and "a singer with an angel-like voice and touching East charm."