The CityU Arts Festival 2022/23 kicked off with the concert “On String of Music” co-performed by the CityU Philharmonic Orchestra featuring the internationally renowned harpists Ms Dan Yu and Ms Lauyee Yeung on the evening of 14 October.
The concert was enjoyed by an audience of 520 comprising staff and students from CityU and the public.
The annual CityU Arts Festival, first launched in 2015 and this year running from 14 October to 20 November, connects CityU students and professional artists through a series of Chinese and Western musical performances that enrich the cultural ambience on campus and further promote CityU’s role in the community as a hub for the arts.
President Way Kuo said in his welcoming speech that CityU encouraged students to “immerse themselves in arts”, echoing the Six Arts described in Confucianism, namely rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy and arithmetic.
“Now in its eighth year, CityU Arts Festival is a platform for our students to showcase their talents. We will continue to nurture our students’ all-round development and encourage them to bring arts performances to the public,” he said.
Sponsored by the CityU Culture and Sports Committee, the Festival chose as its theme “Echo of Arts”, which symbolises CityU students’ passion for music and performance and an unleashing of a new wave of the arts.
Guests attending the opening concert included Mr Alan Poon Pak-lun, Council Member; Professor Raymond Chan Hon-fu, Vice-President (Student Affairs); Professor Henry Chung Shu-hung, Dean of Students; Dr Tim Wong Chi-tim, Director of Student Development Services; and Professor May Ching May-bo, Head of the Department of Chinese and History.
Audiences this year will be treated to several highlights. The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra will present “Chinese Music in the City”, featuring traditional as well as pop songs to refresh audiences’ perception of Chinese music. The CityU Choir and local talented vocalists will perform a bel canto concert, “Bravo! Brava! Bravi!”
The band Young Once will transport audiences back to the 1960s and 1980s with some pop classics while the CityU Chinese Orchestra and prestigious percussionist Mr Angus Fu will perform lively Chinese music at the concert “Dung Caang Dung Caang (Drum Sticks)”.
The finale of the Arts Festival will be the classic Broadway musical Fiddler on the Roof performed by CityU students after months of preparation.
For programme details, please visit https://www.cityu.edu.hk/ctspc/af22_23.shtml。
