Hong Kong has developed significantly over the past few decades, and its ever changing music trends are no exception. Hong Kong has had the best of both worlds in regards to its music scene; gaining both Chinese and colonial British influences. This is evident through the ever-growing western pop music influence on the city alongside its long tradition of Cantonese opera. In addition to growing trends, Hong Kong also leads the Cantopop industry and is home to several prominent orchestras in all of Asian music, including: Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, and other significant figures who are all part of the history of Hong Kong's music scene. :
Traditional Music
Cantonese Opera: Cantonese opera is a traditional Chinese art that is part of Chinese opera, and is popular in Guangdong, Macau and especially Hong Kong. The popular Chinese art form generally involves martial arts, acrobatics, acting, singing and music. The art form was introduced to the city in the 1950’s via immigrants from Shanghai, and began to see large amounts of popularity into the late 1960s. People would be eager to watch the performances held in theatres across the city, a demand met by the number of venues growing over the decade. However, as TV and cinema developed from the late 1960s onwards, there was an obvious decline in the popularity of Cantonese Opera. That being said, it is still a distinct and culturally significant art form in the city, evidenced by its priority status in Hong Kong’s Sunbeam Theatre.
Western Classical Music: Western classical music is and has been widely popular for decades now, in large part due to British colonial influence and the imposed importance of classical music in school curriculums. Furthermore, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, one of Asia’s leading and oldest orchestras, has long-term funds from Swire Group and is significantly subsidised by the HKSAR Government. All of this enables the provision of educational opportunities through academies as well as further promotion for local Hong Kong and Chinese talent. The Hong Kong Sinfonietta and Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra receives similar subsidies whilst also promoting classical and specifically western classical music across Hong Kong.
Modern Music
Western Pop: Western pop music - specifically English pop music - has been a fundamental part of Hong Kong’s music scene for a very long time. One of the main reasons is the fact that English was Hong Kong’s only official language until 1974; hence, pop songs performed in English were highly popular in the city. This was particularly evident during the 1950s to 1970s when people in the city were less conscious of local genres within the industry and instead focused on foreign pop music. The western pop fever was amplified by the growing influence of mass media in Hong Kong at the time, enabling the tracking of western pop trends and broadcasting of pop music programmes. This was further amplified in the era of the Beatles, Elvis Presley and Johnny Mathis, as shown in the rise in western pop music fans when the Beatles visited the city in 1964. To this day, English pop music still remains one of the most popular genres in the city’s music industry. However, with more attention being brought onto local art forms in the industry, more artists have begun to fuse the two styles.. Nowadays, many Hong Kong artists include a mix of Cantonese and English songs in their albums, with Hongkongers tending to listen to both genres as well. All that being said, the influence of Western pop music continues to grow. The annual music and arts festival, Clockenflap, is a significant event that brings many international artists, and subsequently further interest in western pop, to Hong Kong. Unfortunately, in the past couple of years the event has been cancelled due to COVID-19 and other disruptions; however, it is expected to return in 2022 if conditions permit.
Cantopop: Cantopop is a subgenre of pop music that is local to Hong Kong and the city’s culture. It started gaining recognition in 1970’s after the surge of Cantonese Opera and Western Pop music, and surged to fame during the 1980s. Throughout the mid 1970s - 1990s, celebrities in the industry such as Andy Lau, Leslie Cheung, Sam Hui, and Alan Tam quickly rose to fame and helped develop the industry. Other aspects of the entertainment industry contributed to the growing success and fame of Cantopop as well, with the simultaneous growth of the movie and TV industry enabling further recognition of the artists via original soundtracks. However, despite the quick surge of fame the genre had experienced, there was an obvious decline in the popularity of Cantopop during the late 2000s and early 2010s, evident in the clear drop in sales and cultural importance.. To a degree, the number of scandals and introduction of Mandarin as an official language in Hong Kong can be accredited for the downfall, in addition to other genres such as Mandopop and K-pop gaining in popularity and taking over the music scene.
That being said, after years of being called “dying” or “died down”, during the earlier stages of the pandemic in 2020, Cantopop in Hong Kong has seemed to gain more recognition once again. This was particularly because of the Cantopop boyband Mirror, who rose to fame quite quickly for their distinctly local image. Mirror debuted in 2018 with 12 members, and have seen large popularity in their songs, solos, and ventures into other sectors of the entertainment industry.
Conclusion
The rich and complex culture of Hong Kong over the past several decades has shaped the city in numerous ways - especially its music industry. It showcases its colonial influences through the prevalence of western music, whilst not forgetting its local culture infused through genres such as Cantonese Opera and Cantopop. All these genres have significant history and continue to shape the music industry in Hong Kong to be what it is today.
Bibliography:
Writing: Tisya Gupta
Editing: Eric Wang
Graphics: Jennifer Pun
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