Category: concert

Lily Allen Concert Review

Lily Allen live

There is nowhere more soul destroying for a concert than the desolate Hall 10 of the Asia Expo Arena. Still, it’s Lily Allen and expectations are high. As always, getting anything decent to eat or drink was futile so I headed straight into the main hall. On stage a deejay was mixing a variety of sounds. The crowd seemed a bit thin on the ground but the atmosphere, nonetheless, was good. It wasn’t long before Lily Allen appeared, starting her set with ‘Sheezus’. She swiftly segued into ‘Not Fair’ and had the crowd singing along with her.The lighting and visuals were superb and Lily’s stage presence and interaction with the crowd were, as always, fantastic. But where was her band and where were the dancers? She performed several more songs from her latest album, ‘Sheezus’, along with a smattering of her older hits. Surprisingly she didn’t sing ‘Air Balloon’ and unsurprisingly turned down requests from the audience to sing ‘Alfie’. The visual arrangements continued to impress and there was a fun moment when she brought two hapless audience members up on stage to sing with her. The final song ’Fuck You’ had everyone singing along raucously.

It was a good concert but it did feel odd seeing her up there singing to a backing soundtrack mixed by the on-stage deejay rather than with a band. To be honest, it felt more like a glorified karaoke session than a real concert. Was this cost cutting on the artist’s behalf or by the promoter? If I had known in advance, I probably wouldn’t have bought a ticket for the concert. Is this a sign of the times? Will more artists coming to HK do the same and leave their band behind?

Lily Allen Live in Hong Kong 2015
When: 8pm, 31 January, 2015
Where: AsiaWorld-Expo

The Bollands @ Shelter Skelter – The Great European Carnival, 31 January 2015

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852530170&k=rXZ6DmH

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852536111&k=K4wBtBc

The Bollands were out on a Saturday afternoon at The Great European carnival to support Shelter Box in one of their final appearances in Hong Kong before they set off on a massive US Tour. With Joyce on drums, the gig was great fun. I’d love for Joyce and Christian to be recording their gigs and releasing them online. The CD’s are great, but the live shows are fun and The Bollands will be missed when they head to the US.
Click on the photos to see more. My apologies for the video quality, the sound is fine.

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852532381&k=qQnKkb2

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852533775&k=dFZ5MsG

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852511245&k=5qVkHqR

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852512572&k=ZtKmK6F

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852507071&k=RTwRzd6

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2015/The-Bollands-Shelter-Skelter/47246717_rBZF6m#!i=3852505314&k=gMpKm6Z

This Week @ The AIA Great European Carnival

The AIA Great European Carnival

Star Performances, Live Entertainment and Community Events

The AIA Great European Carnival have announced an exciting schedule of entertainment, community engagement activities, and special guest performances that will take place over the coming weeks until the Carnival closes on February 22. The Carnival’s Live Stage will be the venue for many of the appearances which will range from professional, to youth group and school performances.

“Our aim has been to make the carnival and the Live Stage venue accessible to the entire Hong Kong Community, and in partnership with our Title Sponsor AIA, we are proud to provide an additional element of fun and entertainment to our event,” said Michael Denmark, CEO of The Great European Carnival.

“Many different groups have been given the opportunity to showcase their talents and we will witness a wide variety of entertainment from theatrical to dance and drama, Rock, Jazz and Folk. We want to see both seasoned performers as well as the stars of tomorrow. With performances in English, Cantonese and Mandarin, there is something for everyone in the Hong Kong public to enjoy,” added Mr Denmark.

A preview of some of the Performances:

Puss In Boots – Presented by The Hong Kong Players
The Hong Kong Players perform a traditional Christmas pantomime every year and have done so in Hong Kong for more than 50 years. Last year’s pantomime was Puss in Boots. The show’s setting is London: The once great city is in a sorry state: the bumbling Mayor Boris can’t keep control and the evil Queen of the Rats and her vermin followers are taking control. The only hope comes from an ancient prophesy says that when London is at it’s lowest ebb, an innocent stranger will arrive in town and save the day. His arrival will be signalled by the tolling of the bells. It’s up to our hero Puss in Boots to find this stranger and save London. Puss is joined in the fight to save the city by the very beautiful Alice, and the unstoppable great Dame, Sherry Trifle. Will Puss and Alice find the new mayor in time? Will Dame Trifle’s soufflé rise? Will the good guys triumph over the evil rats?

Puss in Boots
When: 2pm, 31 January, 2015; 4pm, 6pm, 1 February, 2015
Where: The Community Stage
How much: Free

Shelter Skelter – Presented by Shelterbox Charity
Taking place on January 31 from 4pm onwards, the Shelter Skelter is a line-up of some of Hong Kong’s best rock bands, brought together by ShelterBox, a Hong Kong Based charity that provides emergency shelter and vital supplies to support communities around the world overwhelmed by disaster and humanitarian crisis. Bands include The Bollands, Thinking Outloud, Shotgun Politics, LOGO, Sheperds the Weak, and the After Party. The aim of the day is to enjoy some of the best local music Hong Kong has to offer and raise awareness for this wonderful charity.

Shelter Skelter
When: 4pm, 31 January, 2015
Where: The Community Stage
How much: Free

VS Music Indie Festival
The VS Music Indie Festival will take place on Saturday 7 February and Sunday 8 February from 4pm until late. Sponsored by VS Music, the Indie music festival will feature up and coming performers from Hong Kong and Taiwan. Included in the line-up is Hey Rachel, Merry Go Round, Tri-dueces, Jabin Law, and Gravity Altestra.

VS Music Indie Festival
When: 7-8 February, 2015
Where: The Community Stage
How much: Free

Youth Performance Groups
Hong Kong youngsters are also given the opportunity to shine on the Carnival’s live stage with a number of song and dance performance groups treading the boards during the matinee shows (between 12noon-3pm) on the weekends. Confirmed already are

31 January – Twinkle Dance Company
1 February – Isla School of Dance
7 February – Island Dance
15 February – The Island Glee Club

The Welsh Male Voice Choir
The Welsh Male Voice choir will sing a selection of Valentine’s themed songs on Sunday the 15th of February at 6pm. The choir was started in 1978 by a small group of expatriates in Hong Kong and now includes some 70 members from a dozen different nations. Over the years they have performed on conventional and unconventional stages at home and overseas. An entirely amateur group, many of their performances are for charity.

The Welsh Male Voice Choir
When: 6pm, 15 February, 2015
Where: The Community Stage
How much: Free

Cheung Chau Diary 2014 Outdoor Screening – 8 November, 2014

長洲誌 2014 - 其哥_Brother Key

The Cheung Chau Diary 2014 Outdoor Screening, part of the Chinese Documentary Festival has been rescheduled to Saturday 8 November 2014. The programme will include the new films of 2014 as well as works from Cheung Chau Diary 2013. There will also be a performance by Cheung Chau musicians.

Cheung Chau Diary 2014
Earlier this year veteran documentary filmmakers from Hong Kong and Taiwan worked with 20 young participants at the “Young Talent Training Camp” on Cheung Chau as they explored the island for interesting film topics. After eight days of heat, rain, frustration and the confusion of filming, they present us with 10 short films that make up Cheung Chau Diary 2014.

The films include people features such as Brother Key, An Ambulanceman, Postman and The Ukulele. Luthier; A Qilin Story of Two Generations, Flower Banner and Man Beside the Sea on preserving traditional businesses; Family on what it is like to be the small shop owners on the island while The Pier and Too Many Cheung Chau Guests are about life on the island. Through the films discover more about the different facets of life in Cheung Chau and the sense of community and tradition that lies in the heart of Hong Kong.

Cheung Chau Diary 2013
Selected shorts from last year’s “Youth Talent Training Camp” including Life, Neighbourhood and Brother Wah, which portray friendship among neighbours; Uncle Fai and The Hair Salon, which examine old traditional shops; The Savage in the Hill and A Man from Cheung Chau, which are character sketches, and Insects and On the Wretched Lives of Fish, which explore nature. The films investigate, each with its unique style, a broad range of subject matters, from intriguing characters to important social issues to the vanishing culture of old districts.

Schedule:
1pm–2:45pm – Screening of Cheung Chau Diary 2013
4-6pm – Music performance
6:30pm-9pm – Outdoor Screening of Cheung Chau Diary 2014

Cheung Chau Diary 2014 Outdoor Screening
When: 1-9pm 8 November, 2014
Where: LOHAS Cheung Chau (Fisheries Joint Association School), Tung Wan Road, Cheung Chau
How much: Free
More info: www.visiblerecord.com

Tallis Vocalis: Great English Renaissance Polyphony – 3pm, 8 November 2014 @ Chinese Methodist Church

Tallis Vocalis: Great English Renaissance Polyphony - 3pm, 8 November 2014 @ Chinese Methodist Church

Founded in 2013 by local choral enthusiast Raymond Choi, the 20 strong ensemble Tallis Vocalis, Hong Kong’s first vocal ensemble dedicated to the performance of European Renaissance music, will present a double debut programme in Hong Kong and Macao on 8th and 9th November 2014 respectively.

The programme consists of works by two important figures of the time: Thomas Tallis and William Byrd and features a variety of styles, from a simple four-part setting of an English text to more elaborate music in Latin for up to seven voices. The ensemble will be conducted by the outstanding young British conductor Andrew Griffiths.

A free pre-concert talk (in English) will be given by the conductor at the Function Room, Chinese Methodist Church, Wanchai at 2:15pm, 8th November 2014.

Programme

Tallis: Loquebantur Variis Linguis, Third Tune from Archbishop Parker’s Psalter, O Nata Lux, O Sacrum Convivium, Miserere Nostri.
Byrd: O Lord, make thy servant Elizabeth, Ave Verum Corpus, Laudibus in Sanctis, Vigilate, Nunc Dimittis.
Sheppard: Media Vita

Tallis Vocalis: Great English Renaissance Polyphony
When: 3pm 8 November, 2014
Where: Chinese Methodist Church, 36 Hennessey Road, Wanchai
How much: $250 ($200 advance)
More Info: www.tallisvocalis.com

Tallis Vocalis: Great English Renaissance Polyphony
When: 4pm 9 November, 2014
Where: St. Joseph’s Seminary, Macao
How much: Free
More Info: www.tallisvocalis.com

Letter to Hong Kong String Orchestra, re your patron CY Leung

Dear Ms Jue Yao, Prof. Anna Pao-Sohmen, Dr. Dame Rosanna WongYick-ming

As founding members of the Hong Kong String Orchestra I’d like to congratulate you on what you have achieved. bc magazine has given the orchestra lots of free coverage, listings and write-ups for your concerts over the years.

However, yesterday we received an email asking for free coverage of your upcoming charity concert – regrettably bc magazine will not be giving exposure to your concert, however noble the cause.

The recent speech by the HK String Orchestra’s honorary patron CY Leung that those Hongkongers who earn less than $14,000/month should be considered second class citizens and have no say in the future of Hong Kong is deeply offensive.

The median monthly income in Hong Kong is $14,000 and a couple of million people work hard long hours doing jobs vital to Hong Kong every day. Every one of those would love to earn over $14,000 – they don’t – but without them Hong Kong ceases to function.

The people CY Leung insults and degrades with his comments are the heart of the orchestra that is Hong Kong, The soloist or conductor are often changed – but without the violin section, or the cellos the music cannot be performed and enjoyed as the composer intended and the soloist is exactly that… solo, alone playing for herself.

Would you have a violinist on stage purely because they were rich, even if they couldn’t play a note and their inability would destroy your performance?

Your charity concerts claim to help those in need or is it purely the charity of the rich ‘be grateful for what we give you’ so you the donor can sleep better at night? Think on this, I expect most of those your charity performances ‘help’ earn less than $14000/month – are their opinions about Hong Kong and it’s future (or on any subject) irrelevant because they are old, sick, victims of crime or abuse… Or will you only give them charity if they mindlessly think and act as you tell them?

While CY Leung is the HK String Orchestra’s patron, I regret to inform you that bc magazine cannot write about the orchestra or its concerts – with all your wealthy financial backers, I doubt you’ll care what one English language magazine does. But if your charity comes from the heart, rather than from selfish need, perhaps you should. Hong Kong has thrived because each person matters, and will continue to thrive if we remember that.

Regards

Simon Durrant – Editor

www.facebook.com/HongKongStringOrchestra

www.stringorchestra.org.hk

Belle and Sebastian, live in Hong Kong @ Asia World Arena – 15 February, 2015

Belle and Sebastian

Belle and Sebastian, live in Hong Kong
When: 15 February, 2015
Where: Asia World Arena
How much: $760 (all standing)
More info: Available from www.hkticketing.com from 10am on Friday 24 October