Culture and Sport - Macao Yearbook

Drummer Monkey, the opening show, was performed by Africa’s leading acrobatic arts troupe
at Sai Van Lake Square. From the World Heritage sites of A-Ma Temple and Senado Square, to
CHAPTER Clementina Leitao Ho Brito 10 Theatre in the North Zone, footprints of the arts festival covered the
entire city.
Artists’ workshops, master classes, lectures, guided tours and reviews were also conducted, so
audiences could better appreciate the festival. About 87.9 percent of tickets were sold, and a total
of 26,800 people participated in the festival.
20th Macao International Music Festival
With “Carrying on with Brilliance” as its theme, the 20th Macao International Music Festival
was held from 6 October to 5 November. The celebrated Chinese pianist Lang Lang, the worldacclaimed
conductor Semyon Bychkov, Canto-pop diva Paula Tsui, Japan’s “new godfather of
music” Ryuichi Sakamoto, the Portuguese fado master Carlos do Carmo, and musicians from
the Berlin Philharmonic and Berlin National Opera House gathered in Macao for the event.
Along with other famous ensembles including Germany’s WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne,
Indonesia’s Batavia Madrigal Singers, Japan’s Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, Portugal’s Xutos e
Pontapes, and Vienna Symphony Virtuosi, they left the most beautiful and lyrical imprint on the
two-decade history of the festival with their distinctive music styles.
The festival featured 30 performances, and a record 95 percent of tickets – 16,000 in all
– were sold. Also, 14,000 people joined the six admission-free, large outdoor concerts, setting
another record. Over 4,000 students and citizens participated in the 13 open master classes and
workshops. In addition, two performances were specially staged for the underprivileged. The
festival also included a retrospective exhibition on past performances at local heritage sites. This
exhibition toured local secondary schools and recaptured the mastery of celebrated musicians
and musical groups from around the world, while allowing visitors to learn more about Macao’s
cultural heritage.
Macao Orchestra
It has been four years since Macao Orchestra began arranging its schedule in the form of a
concert season. The orchestra has introduced the world’s classical music to the public through
its concerts. It also emphasised musical education for young people, by launching an event
combining painting and exhibition to coincide
Health
with the 1 June International
and
Children’s Day,
and arranging the New Year Concert on Campus, and the First Musical Summer Camp for
Macao Youth, all of which have been well received. During 2006, the orchestra held 65 concerts
and performances, attracting a total audience of 38,016 people; the 23 campus concerts drew
audiences totalling 4,808.
Social Welfare
The Macao Orchestra has collaborated with world acclaimed musicians and conductors
including Lang Lang, Okko Kamu, Paik Kun-woo, and Lu Shao-chia. In March 2006, the
orchestra presented a concert featuring works by Macao’s renowned composer Doming Lam,
and a symposium on his creative achievements. Song of Pipa, a piece written by the Macao-born
composer Lam Bun Ching, who lives in the United States, and Ye Xiaogang’s Macao Bride Suite
No. 2, were premiered in December. These premieres exemplified Macao composers’ high regard
for the orchestra, and helped to preserve and promote local cultural resources.