Budding musicians from four schools stage extravaganza to display students' talents

Great distance did very little to stop four government secondary schools from getting together for the first time recently to host a music festival.

The inter-school music festival at Yuen Long Theatre was organised by New Territories Heung Yee Kuk (NTHYK) Yuen Long District Secondary School.

'The inter-school music festival provides an opportunity for our students to learn from students of other schools, which is why we organised such a festival,' said principal John Tsoi Chong-tat.

'It gives them a vision - how good a student musical team can be. Sometimes, students lack such vision. It also gives them a chance to display their musical talents.'

The school invited three other schools - Belilios Public School, Tuen Mun Government Secondary School and Chiu Lut Sau Memorial Secondary School - to take part in the festival.

The festival featured both Chinese and Western musical performances by the schools' Chinese orchestras, symphonic bands, flute duets, choirs and recorder ensembles.

NTHYK Yuen Long District Secondary School introduced compulsory musical instrument learning in Form One classes three years ago.

At the beginning, parents questioned why students were required to learn to play musical instruments in addition to their regular music lessons. The school chose Chinese musical instruments for students to learn because they were more affordable.

Mr Tsoi said under the education reforms, learning should not be limited to textbooks.

'I like classical music very much. It eases the pressure of daily life,' he said.

'I think students should be exposed to different kinds of music apart from Canto-pop,' he added.

Jane Lau, music teacher at Belilios Public School, said the music festival was well-organised and the students had gained valuable experience while learning from one another.

Kary Hon, a Form Six student at Belilios Public School, was impressed by the facilities at Yuen Long Theatre. He said the facilities enabled students to play with more confidence.

Kenneth Ng King-tsun, a Form Five student at NTHYK Yuen Long District Secondary School, said schools should organise more such festivals.

Jacky is a summer intern from Hong Kong Shue Yan College