Absent friends

Ladies and gentlemen, the performance in the Grand Theatre is about to commence. Please now take your seats.' Countless ticket-holders have been marshalled into the Hong Kong Cultural Centre's auditoria by that honey-toned announcement, with its subtle imperative on the word 'now', but few are familiar with the man behind the voice, who died in 2004 yet continues to influence those who knew him as a friend or student.

Briton Michael Rippon did service to the city as head of vocal studies at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (APA) for 12 years, arriving when the academy opened in 1984, laying the department's foundations over the next decade and returning for a second stint in 2002-03.

Next week, the academy will stage an event in the baritone's memory, aimed at strengthening the finances of the Michael Rippon Memorial Scholarship Fund, established in 2006 by his long-time friend, Cecil Leong; its mission, to support local students who would otherwise be unable to develop their vocal talent at the academy.

The Friends for Life concerts on January 20 and 21 reflect the depth of Rippon's influence, both by the title and the fact that many of the participants, now distinguished teachers and performers in their own right, are his former students, including soprano Yuki Ip Po-ching, tenor David Quah and baritone Albert Lim.

They'll be among a host of soloists contributing to a programme of mostly operatic excerpts, supported by the academy's choir and orchestra under Alan Cumberland, the APA's head of woodwind, brass and percussion.

He first met Rippon in 1968, performing with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Glyndebourne opera house in Britain; they found themselves collaborating again some 30 years later when working on APA opera productions. 'With his rich voice and superb acting skills, he was a natural entertainer, an inspiration to us all,' says Cumberland. 'He is greatly missed.'