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The following is issued on behalf of the Provisional Regional Council:

A showcase of Chinese classical music will be performed at Sha Tin Town Hall as the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra is preparing a stunning concert there in mid-October.

Presented by the Provisional Regional Council, the Ensemble of Chinese Traditional Instruments with Qu Chunquan as guest conductor will be staged at 8 pm on October 17 (Saturday) at the Auditorium of the Sha Tin Town Hall.

Repertoires of the concert will include "Red Flowers Spring Up Everywhere", " Fishermen's Song of the Eastern Sea", " Wandering in the Street", " A Joyful Song", " Flying Apsaras", " The Harvest Drum Song", " High Moon", "A Village Celebration" and "Beautiful Scenes of Yunnan". The concert's leaders for paigu, suona and pipa will be undertaken by young Hong Kong musicians Ronald Chin, Lo Wai-leung and Leung Kam-wah respectively.

The Hong Kong City Chinese Orchestra was established in 1994 under the sponsorship of several professional musicans. Its aims is to promote Chinese culture and arts, to foster Chinese music activities in Hong Kong and to serve the community with Chinese music. The ensemble is made up of 50 members comprising music virtuosi, professional music teachers and guaduates of conservatories of mainland China, the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts as well as the music department of the local universities.

Qu Chunquan is presently in the employ of Singapore Chinese Orchestra as its conductor. Former major positions held by him include Class One Resident Conductor of Shanghai National Folk Music Orchestra and Guest Conductor of China Central Ensemble of National Music. Over the years he wrote and adapted substantial numbers of instrumental works and has also recorded a large number of albums and cassette tapes.

Ronald Chin is a young percussionist raised in Hong Kong and was admitted into the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts majoring in Chinese Percussion. Aside from performance, he also composes, arranges and orchestrates music, and some of his works have won him prizes.

Lo Wai-leung is a young wind instrumentalist with great potential who is good at playing a number of Chinese instruments like the guan, dizi and suona. He joined the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra in 1983 and shows keen interest in music composition.

Leung Kam-wah was admitted to the Central Conservatory of Music in 1985 and has devoted herself to pipa performance and teaching since her return to Hong Kong from China in 1987. She has been on invitational tours to Shanghai, Sichuan, Beijing and Britain for stage performances.

Concert tickets priced at $100, $ 80, $ 60 and $ 40 are available at all URBTIX outlets. Half-price tickets are also available for full-time students, senior citizens aged 60 or above and people with disabilities holding a concessionary card on a first-come-first-served basis. Fifteen percent discount is offered for "Friend of Provisional Regional Council Town Halls" to the tickets.

For enquiries, please call 2694 2536. Telephone reservation can be made at 2734 9009.

End/ Friday, October 9, 1998.

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