News
Speech for Mr Kingsley LI, Assistant Postmaster General (Business Development)
Mr LAI, distinguished guests and friends from the media,
Welcome to the issuing ceremony of the "Chinese Percussion Instruments" Special Stamps. Today we are honored to have Mr. Henry LAI, Council Member of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, as our special officiating guest.
Chinese musical instruments have a long history and come in wide varieties. Generally, they are divided into four types, namely string, pluck, pipe and percussion. But for the common folks, the one to reign supreme is percussion instrument. Think about Lunar New Year, Dragon Boat Festival, traditional marriage and birthday banquets, or any other Chinese festive occasions, what kind of music do we hear most often? Ensembles of gongs and drums, of course. Percussion music treats everyone to a toe-tapping and hand-clapping time, even those who can't tell a note from a clef will be able to share in the joy.
We owe Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra to the flourishing of traditional Chinese music in Hong Kong. Not only do they establish Junior Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, giving our children musical enlightenment at a young age, but also deliver regular local and overseas performances which effectively promote music exchange between local and international musicians. This year, they launched the hugely successful Hong Kong Drum Festival, drumming up insatiable interest in percussion music among the citizens.
Hongkong Post is working hard - to promote stamp collecting to the public. We are always on the lookout for commemorative and interesting subjects as the themes of new stamp products. For example, the just released "The Successful Flight of China's First Manned Spacecraft" commemorative stamps have literally won the citizens over. In addition, the upcoming HONG KONG 2004 Stamp Expo, to be held from 31 January to 3 February 2004, promises to be a treasure trove to veteran collectors, giving all the rarely seen currency, coin and stamp exhibits. We also have faith that it will be a wonderland to newcomers, who will no doubt be thrilled by the scale and diversity of the Expo and, hopefully, attracted to fun of philately.
Thank you!