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MR TSIN SAI-NIN (in Cantonese):-Mr Chairman, I will supplement Mr Young's question on difficulties in amendments of laws. It is now 18 months since the amendments of laws were discussed and usually it takes 2 years to put amended laws into execution but with the passing of 2 years the amendments are still not approved. Of course, there may be difficulties which do not concern the Urban Council and it may not concern the Select Committee either, but I want to ask the Select Committee whether the Committee can report to the Standing Committee of the Whole Council and then will make known these difficulties. We want to know where the difficulties lie, otherwise people would blame the Urban Council. I have experience in this in the past and I know that a lot of difficulties are caused by other Government departments. We must see where the blame lies. Does the Chairman agree?
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Mr CHOW, would you like to confirm that?
MR CHOW (in Cantonese):-Mr Chairman, at the next meeting of our Select Committee, we will certainly discuss this question. When we have come to a conclusion or even a preliminary conclusion, I will certainly report to the Standing Committee of the Whole Council for its consideration and direction.
MR MACKENZIE (in English):-Mr Chairman, I think we are all familiar with the intolerable conditions prevailing in these industrial areas like San Po Kong and Kwun Tong in relation to traffic control, and much of these are caused by the blocking of private lanes by illegal and untaxed food-for-man hawkers. May I take it that the intention of any new legislation or new arrangement which I wholly endorse will also have account of restoring these private lanes to the original owners so that they can be used for loading and unloading vehicles and for commercial purposes for which they were originally designed?
MR CHOW (in Cantonese): Our Select Committee will certainly discuss this question.
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Any more supplementary questions? I am surprised that Dr Denny HUANG has not said so but in his defence I ought to remark that the question of food always causes, by tradition, a lot of excitement amongst Cantonese colleagues in this Council. (Laughter). So shall we move to question No. 6?
6 MISS MARIA W. C. TAM asked the following question (in English):-What can the Urban Council do in order to preserve the Cantonese folk music of Nam Yam (#), Lung Chow (龍舟), Muk Yu Shu (*) and Yuet Ngau (粵謳)?
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
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THE HONOURABLE F. K. HU, CHAIRMAN OF THE CULTURAL AFFAIRS SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):-This question deals with Cantonese folk music such as Nam Yam, Lung Chow, Muk Yu Shu and Yuet Ngau and what the Council can do to preserve these Cantonese forms of art. The Council's public libraries have over the years built up a good collection of books and scores on these forms of art and they are available to the public at the reference library of the City Hall. A bibliography on Cantonese folk music is available to Members who are interested.
On the performing side, artists who are competent in these areas of Cantonese folk music are not numerous. Nam Yam singers have been presented regularly by the Council at the City Hall and in open-air entertainment programmes, but with the recent demise of Mr To Woon, a prominent Nam Yam singer, and the dwindling number of competent Nam Yam singers, it has become more and more difficult to organize performances of this nature. Lung Chow, Muk Yu Shu and Yuet Ngau are normally sung without accompaniment. They can be somewhat monotonous and it may be difficult to sustain audience interest if they are presented as solo programmes. However, they are often heard in Cantonese opera as part of a song. If we could find suitable artists we would consider presenting such programmes as outdoor entertainment events.
The Council will do its share in preserving these forms of Cantonese folk singing by presenting them either in concert programmes, as part of Cantonese opera productions or outdoor entertainment and by continuing to collect both written and audio-visual materials on such singing for the public libraries.
MISS TAM (in English):-Mr Chairman, I understand that as far as Mr TO Woon is concerned, he performed for us in various Asian Arts Festivals and other concerts. I wonder if the Chairman of the Cultural Affairs Select Committee can look into our archives and see if we have taped Mr TO Woon's performance so as to preserve those items of work for us?
MR HU (in English):-We do have tapes available for Nam Yam. As a matter of fact, there will be a Nam Yam performance in the coming Mid-Autumn Festival.
MR HILTON CHEONG-LEEN (in English):-I do have an interest in Cantonese folk music and Cantonese food. May I ask a supplementary? Can the Select Committee invite suggestions from the public as how to re-write the lines and keep alive this very important form of Cantonese art?
MR HU (in English):-Mr Chairman, the Council is always anxious to preserve this kind of art and we have been doing so in the past.
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Any supplementary questions? In a passing moment of great enthusiasm, one of our Councillors offered to stand outside...
Page 48 of 136
Page 48 of 136
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62
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MR TSIN SAI-NIN (in Cantonese):-Mr Chairman, I will supplement Mr Young's question on difficulties in amendments of laws. It is now 18 months since the amendments of laws were discussed and usually it takes 2 years to put amended laws into execution but with the passing of 2 years the amend ments are still not approved. Of course, there may be difficulties which do not concern the Urban Council and it may not concern the Select Committee either, but I want to ask the Select Committee whether the Committee can report to the Standing Committee of the Whole Council and then will make known these difficulties. We want to know where the difficulties lie, otherwise people would blame the Urban Council. I have experience in this in the past and I know that a lot of difficulties are caused by other Government depart. ments. We must see where the blame lies. Does the Chairman agree?
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Mr CHOW, would you like to confirm that?
MR CHOW (in Cantonese): -Mr Chairman, at the next meeting of our Select Committee, we will certainly discuss this question. When we have come to a conclusion or even a preliminary conclusion, I will certainly report to the Standing Committee of the Whole Council for its consideration and direction.
MR MACKENZIE (in English):-Mr Chairman, I think we are all familiar with the intolerable conditions prevailing in these industrial areas like San Po Kong and Kwun Tong in relation to traffic control, and much of these are caused by the blocking of private lanes by illegal and untaxed food-for-man hawkers. May I take it that the intention of any new legislation or new arrangement which I wholly endorse will also have account of restoring these private lanes to the original owners so that they can be used for loading and unloading vehicles and for commercial purposes for which they were originally designed?
MR CHOW (in Cantonese): Our Select Committee will certainly discuss this question.
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Any more supplementary questions? I am surprised that Dr Denny HUANG has not said so but in his defence I ought to remark that the question of food always causes, by tradition, a lot of excitement amongst Cantonese colleagues in this Council. (Laughter). So shall we move to question No. 6?
6 MISS MARIA W. C. TAM asked the following question (in English): -What can the Urban Council do in order to preserve the Cantonese folk music of Nam Yam (#), Lung Chow (), Muk Yu Shu (*) and Yuet Ngau (粵謳)?
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
Page 48 of 136
63
THE HONOURABLE F. K. HU, CHAIRMAN OF THE CULTURAL AFFAIRS SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):-This question deals with Can- tonese folk music such as Nam Yam, Lung Chow, Muk Yu Shu and Yuet Ngau and what the Council can do to preserve these Cantonese forms of art. The Council's public libraries have over the years built up a good collection of books and scores on these forms of art and they are available to the public at the reference library of the City Hall. A bibliography on Cantonese folk music is available to Members who are interested.
On the performing side, artists who are competent in these areas of Cantonese folk music are not numerous. Nam Yam singers have been pre- sented regularly by the Council at the City Hall and in open-air entertainment programmes, but with the recent demise of Mr To Woon, a prominent Nam Yam singer, and the dwindling number of competent Nam Yam singers, it has become more and more difficult to organize performances of this nature. Lung Chow, Muk Yu Shu and Yuet Ngau are normally sung without ac- companiment. They can be somewhat monotonous and it may be difficult to sustain audience interest if they are presented as solo programmes. However, they are often heard in Cantonese opera as part of a song. If we could find suitable artists we would consider presenting such programmes as outdoor entertainment events.
The Council will do its share in preserving these forms of Cantonese folk singing by presenting them either in concert programmes, as part of Cantonese opera productions or outdoor entertainment and by continuing to collect both written and audio-visual materials on such singing for the public libraries.
MISS TAM (in English):-Mr Chairman, I understand that as far as Mr TO Woon is concerned, he performed for us in various Asian Arts Festivals and other concerts. I wonder if the Chairman of the Cultural Affairs Select Com- mittee can look into our archives and see if we have taped Mr TO Woon's performance so as to preserve those items of work for us?
MR HU (in English):-We do have tapes available for Nam Yam. As a matter of fact, there will be a Nam Yam performance in the coming Mid- Autumn Festival.
MR HILTON CHEONG-LEEN (in English):-I do have an interest in Cantonese folk music and Cantonese food. May I ask a supplementary? Can the Select Committee invite suggestions from the public as how to re-write the lines and keep alive this very important form of Cantonese art?
MR HU (in English):-Mr Chairman, the Council is always anxious to pre- serve this kind of art and we have been doing so in the past.
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Any supplementary questions? In a passing mo- ment of great enthusiasm, one of our Councillors offered to stand outside
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.