After a 13-year absence, new-look Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra promises a powerful and refined sound at Macau festival

The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra performs at a prestigious festival in Macau for the first time in 13 years on Tuesday with new instruments and a revised roster of players it hopes will improve the experience for concert-goers.

The 85-member outfit, which plays traditional Chinese instruments, will line up alongside renowned ensembles such as the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the BBC Philharmonic at the 29th Macao International Music Festival.

“Our last time at the festival was shortly after we were corporatised in 2001 and we shared the stage with the Macao Chinese Orchestra,” said Yan Huichang,  artistic director since 1997.

“This time we will perform there solely on our own a programme that showcases work by Hong Kong composers and those in our own repertory accumulated over the years.”

It will be the orchestra’s first out-of-town performance since a critically acclaimed tour to Finland and Estonia in August.

“Unlike the Scandinavian tour, which featured mostly modern works, we will offer a diverse programme to the Macau audience, including our own composer Chan Ming-chi’s  orchestral work Jing-Qi-Shen and the rousing Yellow River Capriccio by mainland composer Cheng Dazhao, a piece that will involve audience participation, which is a great way to conclude the concert,” Yan said.

He said the Macau audience would get to hear the improved sound of the eco-huqin, a new version of the Chinese fiddle that uses bio-degradable membrane in place of traditional python skin. The orchestra has developed and performed it in more than 1,000 concerts since 2004.