23
The Arts
THE year saw the consolidation of the City Hall as the cultural centre of Hong Kong, full use being made of the facilities offered by this fine group of modern buildings. The buildings within the City Hall precincts house a 1,500-seat concert hall adaptable for stage production when required, a 470-seat theatre/cinema, a banqueting hall (at present let out on contract as a restaurant), a ballroom, an art gallery and museum, a library, exhibition halls and two lecture rooms each of which has facilities for the showing of films and slides, and two committee rooms.
Through the favourable comments of visiting musicians the City Hall has established a reputation for having two of the finest auditoria in the Far East, both for full orchestral concerts and solo recitals. A taste for concert and theatre-going is one which the people of Hong Kong have had, in the past, little chance to develop, but that there is growing interest in 'live' performances of music and drama is indicated by the increasing attendance at performances, not only those of overseas artists but of local artists as well, and by the growing number and improvement in quality of these performances. In the music heard during the year, the most notable feature has been the great increase in both its range and variety over that presented in past years, and considering that some of the items were fairly esoteric, with which some years ago it might have been difficult to draw an audience in Hong Kong, the attendance at concerts was, in general, extremely good and frequently enthusiastic.
The only overseas symphony orchestra to play in Hong Kong in 1963 was the Polish Symphony Orchestra. Under two con- ductors, Jan Krenz and Jersy Katlewicz, they gave three successful concerts to highly appreciative audiences. Their soloist was the pianist Barbara Hesse-Bukawska. Two local orchestras, the Hong Kong Philharmonic and the South China Philharmonic, were also heard in concerts. Both these orchestras are made up largely of