In a mixed year for arts, one of the key events was the final emergence of the West Kowloon Cultural District project on the horizon. The government announced it was setting aside HK$19 billion for the development of 15 arts and cultural venues on the 40-hectare site while pledging to inject more funds into enhancing 'software' such as nurturing artistic talents, plus education and audience building.
This is heartening news for the local performing arts scene, which had a good and bad year, with most classical concerts and dance shows falling into the former category and homegrown theatre drama productions into the latter.
For classical music, it was a year in which ever younger concert-goers were taken to the Hong Kong Cultural Centre by well-intentioned parents; mobile phones fell largely silent during performances, but text-messaging remained alive and well; and the game of spot-the-programme on posters became an unfair challenge as details of works to be performed shrank to microscopic font sizes - unless it was an announcement for a concert by Lang Lang, in which case you wouldn't even find a programme.
Yip Wing-sie and the Hong Kong Sinfonietta came up trumps again with sell-out shows such as Suzie Templeton's Peter and the Wolf - The Film (with live orchestra) and the HKS McDull Music Project 2.
The Hong Kong Arts Festival banished piano recitals but fancied putting Brahms' three string quartets alongside works by Webern on the same programme. If there's ever a marathon for musicians, our bet goes on the Artemis Quartet.
The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra's development continued to flourish under Edo de Waart's leadership, with operatic and symphonic blockbusters taking the ensemble forward in strides - and one or two of the guest conductors effecting a quick tiptoe backwards.