MUSICIAN

QUEENS TALENTED
Mr. Lau Kin-kei Student (1996-03) Teacher (2008-)

Mr. Lau Kin Kei never imagined that he would be the head of Music Department of Queens College ten years ago when he graduated from QC. Nonetheless, his connection with music was obvious even he was a student. I really took joy in my time spent in the recorder band and the choir, he said with a gentle smile, as if searching for his fleeing memories. In his senior years, Mr. Lau took on duties in the Student Council, Music Society and Arts Club. As a student, I had great passion for these activities, he said with pride. However, there was tradeoff in his academic achievements. I ranked fifth in Form 1, but thats it; my ranking kept falling since, he said, I felt I was in trouble after taking the mock CE exam in March of form five. Mr. Lau only got an A in Mathematics, attaining a score of 23 out of 30. I wished to take Pure Mathematics, yet I wouldnt be able to continue form six in QC if I insisted so. I loved my school, and I wanted to stay with my schoolmates, so I forgone my preferred subject. In form six, Mr. Lau served as the Head of

Publicity in the Student Council named Pilot, Chairman of the Music Society and Vice Chairman of the Arts Club. I thought it was meaningful to strive for welfare on behalf of my schoolmates. Also, the experience of communicating, sometimes arguing, with teachers and school management officials was valuable for building my communication skills. Besides, being a student of class 4D and 5D at the time, Mr. Lau came across with a quite a number of teachers who still remain till today, namely Ms. Wu Lai-mee (class teacher, biology), Ms. Chan Lap-lin (mathematics), Ms. Ng Chan Suk-yee (chemistry) and so on. Besides bountiful duties and activities that filled Mr. Laus campus life, inspiring teachers also left profound memories in him. Speaking of his predecessor, Dr. Lau Kai-chi, Mr. Lau expressed his admiration, Dr. Laus dedication in music education, performance and composing truly inspired me. His loyalty to the Catholic religion and his care for students exemplify his wholehearted devotion

to life. Ever since my graduation from QC, I still kept frequent contact with Dr. Lau. Apart from Dr. Lau, Mr. Lau also appreciated Ms. Chan Lap-lins rewarding Mathematics lessons. She always explained very clearly. Though she was strict, she had a great sense of humor. Students respected her as an experienced teacher. The third teacher Mr. Lau finds admirable is Mr. Leung, our present Assistant Principal, also made an impression on Mr. Lau. He excels in handling matters diplomatically. Whats more, he tends to treat colleagues and students impartially and sincerely. Before teaching at Queens College, Mr. Lau was a freelance piano teacher, accompanist and choir conductor. In 2008, Dr. Lau phoned me. He talked about his health problems and hoped that I could be a substitution teacher as he took several months of sick leave. I hesitated as I thought of my many piano students, yet I decided to come back at last. Not only because Dr. Lau was my

Being the apprectice of Dr. Lau Kai Chi, he came back and teach music after graduation to inherit the job. A prominent figure in QC music, always has, always will.

grateful mentor but Queens college was also my beloved Alma Mater. It was a challenge for me; I hadnt taken up such formal job before. As Dr. Lau needed more rest, I needed to manage the large number of music teams with the Music Festival approaching in the second term. Up till year 2009, Mr. Lau still served as the substitute of Dr. Lau alternately when he recalled there were fluctuations in Dr. Laus health conditions. In this hard time, Mr. Lau appreciated the helping hands. I was really glad that the senior students helped a lot, especially the students of the CE music class, who had to help themselves at the absence of Dr. Lau. To a certain extent, I treated the senior students as partners rather than students at that time. Mr. Lau, along with all his students by then, stood firmly to their belief that Dr. Lau would come back very soon. Nevertheless, In May, Mr. Lau received the phone call from Dr. Laus relatives about his pass away, everything turned out to be dreadful and sorrowful by then. QC students in the past acted as a relatively minor character in the school music development but now students tend to be taking part in the organization stage and QC music itself has become more and more independent. In the recent decades,

Without thinking, learning will be confused; Without learning, thinking will be dubious.
the music teams have become more specialized than before and are more presentable on the whole, in spite of the fact that they are still making steadfast improvements year by year. Even though there is still a long way for our music to go, Mr. Lau believed firmly that the collective efforts accumulated by the QC students will soon overcome the dilemmas right ahead. Mr. Lau was happy to see our recorder bands continue to prosper. It was Dr. Laus idea that had built the QCs tradition of playing recorder. Not only have our recorder bands achieved excellent results in competitions, playing recorder has fueled our schools music education. Now, students regardless of musical background or academic achievements make their contact with music through playing recorder. Playing recorder has become a school-wide culture. When asked to give a piece of advice to us juniors, Mr. Lau particularly pinpointed, As the old Chinese proverb goes, Without thinking, learning will be confused; Without learning, thinking will be dubious., while both elements are equally significant. I sincerely hope this can be a watchword for those who themselves going astray in the learning maze. . Other than that, Mr. Lau hoped QC student to awaken to the importance of health as well as maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The second word of advice from Mr. Lau is to anticipate students searching for their own interest whilst striking a good balance between games and studies. Lastly, Mr. Lau also hopes students would keep distant from indulging into IT gadgets as they would hinder their ability to communicate and concentrated into working.

QUEENS ONE AND ONLY

SUPERSTAR
Another successor to Dr. Lau Kai Chi after graduation in CUHK Music. A charming voice and outstanding on-stage performances makes him an idol among QC boys.

He suspected that some people are making a mess of music in Hong Kong. He wanted to help change the scenario, so he made up his mind to teach music in form six. Mr. Lau seemed satisfied with the shift of roles in QCs music teams, Since my time here, the dominant role has shifted from teachers to students. Now, students can express their opinions, and we gained a multiple perspective on the direction of development. Students participation benefits their own leadership building. Also, this promotes the spreading of music in QC as a culture. To me, it reduces my workload. This is surely a win-win situation. Yet, the robust development of the recorder band did not bring him full satisfaction. Mr. Lau wanted to extend the level of musical immersion for QC students. I hope that choir-singing can also be established as a school-wide culture, he announced, The voice is an innate musical instrument that everyone can connect to. It is a marvelous means to appreciate music. Mr. Lau was also very happy to see the forming of contemporary a cappella groups in QC. I hope their development sustains, he said sincerely, Its a special experience for the students. Nonetheless, Mr. Lau saw worries. He noticed declining quality of students. The material-rich society changes students attitudes, so do the high-tech gadgets, he analysed. Mr. Lau also expressed that the class reduction scheme threatens the supply of talented students, who fuel the prosperity of musical groups. Mr. Lau paused for a moment before delivering his heartfelt advice. Queens College is a green house, he warned, Students enjoy too much freedom and care that they easily take things as granted but at the end of the day, they will discover a whole different world out there; it is better to get equipped. Queenians need to be more flexible to embrace the challenges they face in society. They need to demand more of themselves and fix their values, Mr. Lau advised.

Unlike many students today, Mr. Lau Yiu Man was not as all-rounded when he entered Queens College. I started playing the piano only when I was in primary five, frankly he said. Nevertheless, that did not prevent him from enjoying music. In form one, Mr. Lau took part in the Junior Choir, which was led by Dr. Lau Kai Chi then. Dr. Lau was perhaps the most distinguished scholar of Latin plainsongs in Hong Kong. So we had to sing a lot of sacred music, in an alien language, he said, forcing a smile, Not all of us liked it we didnt even know what the librettos meant. However, as we later learnt about the musical background, we treasured the valuable memory of singing and learning about this special kind of music. Besides singing, Mr. Lau quickly found interest in recorder. At the end of form one, I earned full marks in Music by playing the Butterfly Lovers (). That boosted my confidence in performing, Mr. Lau said excitedly. Without hesitation, he joined the recorder band in form two. Mr. Lau proved to be a valuable asset to the recorder band. In form three, Mr. Lau formed the youngest recorder ensemble in QC to compete in the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival. We won the champion, beating the senior boys, he declared. After that, Mr. Lau became the captain of the recorder band in form four and six. Mr. Lau shared another memorable musical experience - the Quick Study vocal event at the Music

Festival. Once we received the score by fax only one day before the competition. Then we had to spend the whole day practising it, and competed the next day, he said with enthusiasm. Though the competition is no longer available, we can sure feel the heat of the event through Mr. Laus words. In form three, Mr. Lau also made progress in academic performance. Leaping from around hundred and fiftieth in form to seventieth in from was encouraging, he said. Sadly, his joy did not sustain; Mr. Lau was unsatisfied with his CE results. I failed to hit As in all my most confident subjects Maths, A. Maths and Physics, he frowned, and the most frustrating and miserable bit is that I got an E in Music. Luckily, universities then weighted words more than numbers. After graduation, Mr. Lau was admitted to the Music Department of CUHK through a successful interview. Still, Mr. Lau was disheartened by his exam results. I doubted if music is really my strength, he said. He changed his mind until he met a prominent musician, Mr. Ng Cheuk Yin. He was surely talented I admired him, yet he also got an E in CE Music, Mr. Lau derided. The lesson is, dont put too much emphasis on exams; you need to believe in your own abilities. When asked about his most inspiring teacher, Mr. Lau thought of Dr. Lau Kai Chi instantly, Though I didnt agree with some of his methods, I most revered his total dedication and passion to music, and I most appreciated his perseverance.

He used to rehearse with ensembles, choirs and the orchestra all by himself. He would utilize every second from recesses, lunch hours to the Lunar New Year holidays. He could forgo breakfast and lunch just to practice with us. This level of devotion, Mr. Lau Kin Kei and I can never present. Despite his fondness for Dr. Lau, Mr. Lau once got on the wrong side of Dr. Lau. I was in form six. I remember Dr. Lau scolded us when some junior schoolmates and I were putting up a banner; he complained about the banner being in the wrong color. He got extremely angry, and we burst into tears, Mr. Lau recalled regretfully. After the incident, Mr. Lau talked to Dr. Lau less often. Anyway, this event might as well illustrate Dr. Laus stern manner. He was determined on his ways and decisions, Mr. Lau concluded. Mr. Laus desire to teach music might have sprouted from his discontent with local music education. Hong Kong people have a weird mindset they see the recorder as a toy, rather than a musical instrument, he said with disdain. The problem is that students dont know any traditional repertoire for the instrument. Maybe the recorders true identity is overshadowed by its low price, which also made it prevalent for educational purpose. Another experience augmented his discomfort. I once taught a student who hadnt learnt to read scores or know rhythms but who could make her way to grade 4. This was unacceptable for me, Mr. Lau said.