Soundtrack to the city: how Filipino musicians rocked Hong Kong
Bading Tuason belongs to that bygone era of Hong Kong captured only in fading black-and-white photographs.
The former band leader, who celebrated his 77th birthday this month, worked at the Hongkong Hilton on Queen's Road Central for 32 years until the landmark hotel was knocked down in 1995 to make way for the Cheung Kong Centre.
He was a familiar face at the Eagle's Nest supper club on the 25th floor, which was the place to be seen during the 1960s, when few other venues were considered for wedding anniversaries, engagements and other special occasions.
Pianist Tuason, who came to Hong Kong in 1961, will be coming out of retirement today to perform at a concert co-organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Philippine Consulate. A one-day photo exhibition will run at the venue to raise awareness of the contribution Filipino musicians have made to the local music and social scenes.
'There are many musicians in the Philippines - it's just like a factory of musicians,' says Tuason, who played on the soundtracks of Hong Kong-made films in the 1960s. What was the attraction of the city for his peers at the time? 'It was better pay, security - and, of course, experience and adventure.'
Although age has dimmed his memory, he recalls playing backing piano for the likes of Rat Pack member Sammy Davis Jnr, whose exploits with fellow members Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin have become part of entertainment folklore.
Tuason also recorded film scores under the direction of composer Joseph Koo Ka-fai - a former Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest alumnus - who wrote popular hits in Cantonese and Putonghua during the 60s and 70s.
The exhibition of images spanning about six decades gives a rare insight into a close-knit community that has entertained Hong Kong throughout the city's years of post-war prosperity.
The photographs, many from private collections, are a historical treasure trove that not only record personal moments, but also chronicle changes in the city's fashions and urban landscape.
'It's a tribute to [Filipino] musicians in Hong Kong and their talents,' says Marie Docas, cultural assistant at the Philippine Consulate General. 'It's just to acknowledge their contribution to the cultural life of this city.'
Musicians from the Philippines have been working in China since the 1920s when Shanghai played host to a thriving jazz scene and the city rivalled Weimar-era Berlin as a by-word for Bohemian decadence. Many of these performers settled in British- ruled Hong Kong after the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and made a life for themselves by offering their talents to the city's hotels, nightclubs, orchestras and film industry.
Images from the exhibition include the stiff-collared black- tie formality of Fred Carpio and his Orchestra from the 1940s (the first Filipino orchestra to perform at the Peninsula Hotel) and the Motown-inspired Christine Samson and the D'Topnotes from the early 1970s.
There are also images of venues now long gone, such as the Kamling Restaurant and Night Club - 'somewhere near' Kennedy Town - which was supposedly frequented by an unnamed former governor of Hong Kong because of its snake soup.
Some of the photographs feature familiar faces, and former governors appear in several. Others provide glimpses into a Hong Kong that has long since disappeared.
The local music industry has also moved on. It's become harder for Filipino musicians to make a living in recent years as tastes have changed and karaoke and Canto-pop have overtaken nightclubs and hotel lounge acts in popularity.
'Towards the end of the 80s and the early 90s there weren't as many nightclubs in Hong Kong,' says keyboard player Ernesto Corpus, 48, who has won acclaim for his organ accompaniment of some of the best-known movies of the silent era at film festivals here and overseas. 'The tastes of Hong Kong people then changed. Before, we had excellent Filipino jazz musicians, we had big bands, we had people who were on par with international musicians. Now, we don't have as many as that.'
Corpus, who will play the piano at today's concert alongside his 82-year-old violinist father, Filemon, has performed and arranged music at local concerts for the likes of Diana Ross, Shirley Bassey and the late Anita Mui Yim-fong.
He laments the rise of do-it-yourself entertainment. 'What they will do now is, they'll sing karaoke before their first mahjong session, and then karaoke again and then mahjong again - and there goes the whole night.'
But performances at today's concert by dozens of Filipino musicians living and working in Hong Kong should demonstrate that a decades-old musical tradition continues to survive in the city and will continue to do so for many more years.
Concert in the Park and associated photographic exhibition, Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza, today, 1pm-6 pm, free
