Ms YIP Wing-sie
Conductor
Ms YIP Wing-sie, BBS, JP, was born into a family of musicians. As both of her parents engaged in music business, she has naturally followed a music career after her secondary education. Ms YIP was granted a scholarship from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Music and Dance Fund (the Fund) in 1978 for further studies in the United Kingdom. The scholarship enabled her to pursue studies free from worry and take her favourite subjects. She majored in violin and minored in piano, teaching, conducting, etc. All these were highly beneficial to her future development. In her opinion, London was a music capital, she could have the chances to enjoy various performances from different countries. Moreover, given the proximity of the United Kingdom to the Continental Europe, she could also travel to different European countries to take different summer courses and join music camps during summer holidays. She was grateful to the Fund for providing her with the valuable learning opportunity.
Ms YIP considered that the development of music flourished in Hong Kong during the late 1970s when many new performance venues were constructed. With the commencement of operation of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in the 1980s, more opportunities were provided for music learning. However, Hong Kong people are always too busy to learn and appreciate music. With the increase in household income, more families can now afford the tuition fees for their children to learn musical instruments. Regrettably, most of them just drift with the tide, and only few of them appreciate music wholeheartedly. Ms YIP reiterated that children should be guided to learn music at a young age to nurture their interest in music. In this respect, she hopes that the professional orchestras and musicians in Hong Kong can collectively contribute to promote music development.
Ms YIP said that Hong Kong is a commercial city. Most parents neither appreciate the benefits of arts to their children nor support their children in pursuing music as their career as it may not enable them to earn a living. Ms YIP thought that the Fund could offer an opportunity for young people to study abroad, which would not only enhance their knowledge of arts, but also broaden their horizons. They might also have a chance to appreciate the performance of different orchestras, which would help develop their potential.
Ms YIP encouraged arts practitioners to play a more active role in community affairs and make contribution to the society apart from focusing on their career development. She was once a member of the Music Audition Panel of the Fund and had the opportunity to appreciate the performance of young musicians. Ms YIP pointed out that the foremost duty of the Panel is to select the most outstanding musicians as grantees of the scholarship through assessing their potential and ability to demonstrate their talents freely. In addition, the Panel would assess, through interviews, whether the candidates are mature, have the ability to effectively use their time for study, and have the potential to contribute to the music development in Hong Kong upon completion of their studies.
Finally, Ms YIP said that the Fund has helped many young people to study abroad. At the same time, the orchestras in Hong Kong can offer working opportunities for them to play to their strengths and to put their learning into practice. As a result, the local community can appreciate better music and their cultural life will be enriched.