“Lingering Echoes - Heritage and Innovation of Nanyin”Second Talk“Canton Music Legacy in Hong Kong: Nanyin, Banyan and Yueou by blind musicians Dou Wun and Lee Ngan-Kiu”
July 2025
Jointly presented by Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and Leisure and Cultural Services Department
Co-organised by Tung Wah Museum and Hong Kong Heritage Museum
“Lingering Echoes - Heritage and Innovation of Nanyin” Activity Series
Nanyin is a form of narrative singing presented in Cantonese. Since the early 20th century, nanyin has evolved and gained popularity in Hong Kong, becoming a beloved form of mass entertainment. Many of the early singers were blind, and their lyrics often depicted the challenges faced by the ordinary people in their daily life. These works provide valuable insights into the social landscape of Hong Kong across various periods. Nanyin offers much more than mere entertainment, it embodies significant historical, cultural and artistic value, and has been included in the inaugural Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Hong Kong.This year marks the 155th anniversary of the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and the 55th anniversary of Tung Wah Museum. To celebrate, the Tung Wah Museum has joined hands with the Hong Kong Heritage Museum to organise a series of nanyin-themed activities, in a bid to preserve and share the essence of this art form, allowing the public to appreciate its style and understand its historical and cultural significance as well as its ongoing innovation and transmission through generations.
Second Talk “Canton Music Legacy in Hong Kong: Nanyin, Banyan and Yueou by blind musicians Dou Wun and Lee Ngan-kiu”
Many of the nanyin, banyan and yueou songs performed in both historical and contemporary Hong Kong originated from Canton (Guangzhou). This talk will explore how the imprint of Guangzhou has manifested in Hong Kong’s musical landscape and how the city is depicted in works from the late Qing dynasty, referencing the banyan song “The Paramours' Squabble” performed by gushi (male blind musician) Dou Wun, “Offerings by Qinglan” delivered in the yueou style by shiniang (female blind musician) Lee Ngan-kiu and other notable pieces, such as “Song of the Exile” and “Ho Wai-kwan Laments from the First till the Fifth Watch of Night”, and lyrics that recount the fire in Dashatou, Guangzhou, which occurred in the first lunar month of the first year of Qing Emperor Xuantong’s reign.
Speaker: Professor Ching May-bo (Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, Head and Professor of the Department of Chinese and History, the City University of Hong Kong)
Date: 12 July 2025 (Saturday)
Time: 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Venue: Theatre, Hong Kong Heritage Museum (1 Man Lam Road, Sha Tin, Hong Kong)
* The lecture will be conducted in Cantonese.
* Free admission.
* First come, first served.
* For special arrangements under inclement weather conditions, please click here for details.
* Programmes are subject to change and cancellation without prior notice. For enquiries, please call 2770 0867.
備註：
本辦公室已敦促屬下員工及活動提供者，於服務提供時必須留意並遵從《中華人民共和國香港特別行政區維護國家安全法》和與維護國家安全有關的香港其他法律，包括但不限於《國旗及國徽條例》、《區旗及區徽條例》及《國歌條例》，並確保在轄下單位內的行為或活動不會可能構成或可能導致在國安法或香港其他法律下屬危害國家安全，或不利於國家安全的罪行。
