The 2017 Hong Kong Youth Music Camp, organised by the Music Office of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, will be held in July and August at Lei Yue Mun Park. Highly acclaimed international musicians will be invited to give orchestral, band and choral training to young musicians, exploring the wonderful world of music in a green setting. Applications are now open for qualified young musicians aged 10 to 25.
Two music camps will be organised this year to provide training to over 400 campers, both local and non-local. Camp A will be for music groups of Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Band and Junior Chinese Orchestra from July 30 to August 6. Camp B will be for groups of Chinese Orchestra, Youth Choir and Junior String Orchestra from August 6 to 13.
The fee is $1,510 for local campers and $2,180 for non-local campers. To encourage international music exchanges, Parsons Music, the event sponsor, will offer scholarships for non-local musicians with excellent musical standards to join the camps.
Conductors at this year’s Music Camp will include the Music Director of Taoyuan City Jungli Youth Orchestra Association and Vice-Chairman of the World Federation of Amateur Orchestras, Joe Yamaji; renowned Japanese composer of wind music and faculty member of SHOBI Music College, Tokyo, Satoshi Yagisawa; Resident Conductor of the Jilin Chinese Orchestra and China Ethnic Song and Dance Ensemble, Wen Feng-chao; Resident Conductor of the Singapore Chinese Orchestra and Music Director of the Singapore Youth Chinese Orchestra, Quek Ling-kiong; the Director of Music, the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge (United Kingdom) and Conductor Laureate of the BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury; and Violist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and former Assistant Principal Violist of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Kuo Wei-ting.
In addition, masterclasses, workshops and sharing sessions will be arranged for campers to hone their musical skills. Speakers will include renowned percussionist Choy Lap-tak; suona performer of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Law Hang-leung; Gehu Principal of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Tung Hiu-lo; and Assistant Conductor of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Vivian Ip. Campers and choir members will participate in two public concerts to be held in August to showcase their achievements.
A day camp entitled “A Wonderful Music Day Tour” will also be held every Monday to Friday from July 31 to August 11. Organisations, families and other groups of individuals are welcome to visit rehearsals, attend mini-concerts and take part in music games. Day camp participants will also be able to use various recreational facilities at the camp. The fee will be $80 per person per day. A concessionary rate of $58 will apply to children, full-time students, senior citizens aged 60 and above and people with disabilities.
Application forms for the music camps and day camp are available at all Music Office Music Centres and downloadable from the Music Office’s website at www.lcsd. gov.hk/musicoffice. The application deadlines are March 30 for the residential camps and May 31 for the day camp. For enquiries, please call 2582 5334.
