THE PHIL & FOUR STARS: A PERFECT MATCH, Hong Kong Coliseum, December 4 Since the success of Jacky Cheung Hok-yau's concert with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra in 1995, concerts with the Phil have been the 'in' thing. With Cheung setting the tone, they have become associated with what the music industry here terms 'powerful' singers (as opposed to 'idol' singers).
In the past year, a few singers have graced the stage with the Phil, including Priscilla Chan Wai-han, known for her crystal-clear voice. The orchestra and singers like Cheung and Chan were a perfect match; but the Phil and its four stars - Kit Chan Kit-yee, Joyce Lee Lok-cia, Mark Lui Chung-tak and William So Wing-hong - may this time have pushed the edge of the envelope a little more than expected.
Chan, Lee and So have great voices, and Lui - who is one-half of the band Dry - is a gifted musician and one of Hong Kong's top producers. But while all are talented in their own way, they are still relatively green when it comes to such performances.
And most, if not all, appeared in awe of the almost 100-strong orchestra backing them, and sounded strained and nervous.
The evening started with a rousing rendition of Bizet's March Of The Toreadors from Carmen. Chan then slipped in with a moving Waiting - from Jacky Cheung's stage musical Snow.Wolf.Lake - which sounded even better than the original with full orchestra.
Lee was also the consummate professional but made the mistake of making two questionable song choices. One was the theme from the TVB series A Kindred Spirit. While these nights with the Phil are obviously aimed at making the classics sound more accessible to the general Canto-pop audience, taking it down to the level of a soap opera lacked some taste.