IC hosted “Macao International Music Festival Forum” Renowned guests explored the sustainable development of a city
On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Macao International Music Festival, the Cultural Affairs Bureau hosted the “Macao International Music Festival Forum” themed “Music and Arts Festival as Drivers of a City’s Cultural Development” from 30 September to 1 October at the Macao Cultural Centre Conference Room, to explore how international arts festivals and events contribute to the sustainable development of a city. Various renowned guests from cultural sectors from both overseas and the nearby regions discussed and explored the influence between music and arts festivals and the urban cultural development in various regions. The two-day “Macao International Music Festival Forum” features a number of sessions covering a wide range of themes, from city branding, programming, audience development, cultural tourism and Internet marketing, to study how a long-term development strategy and elements such as arts and local history and culture, heritage buildings, geographic environment, boosting the international image and profile of the cities while driving the development in fields such as the economy, society and culture. Several prominent practitioners from overseas and nearby regions were invited to conduct the talks in the Forum, including the Managing Director of the Barbican Centre, Sir Nicholas Kenyon; the Founder and Executive Director of the Verbier Festival, Martin Engstroem; the CEO of Arts House Limited, Singapore, Lee Chor Lin; the Executive Director of the Hong Kong Arts Festival, Tisa Ho; the Co-founder and Artistic Director of Clockenflap, Hong Kong’s Music and Arts Festival, Jay Forster; the Digital Strategist of Clockenflap, Hong Kong’s Music and Arts Festival, Simon Bratt; the Dean of the School of Music of Shanghai University, Wang Yong; the Director of the Shanghai Culture Square, Zhang Jie; and the General Manager of Wu Promotions, Wu Jiatong, among others, in an effort to facilitate exchange between Macao and other places and together explore new approaches to the development of arts festivals in cities. The “Macao International Music Festival Forum” was attended by the President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Ung Vai Meng, and several speakers of the talks; the Vice President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Leung Hio Ming; the EMA Co-Programme Leader and Adjunct Professor of the Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tseng Sun-man; the experienced writer of South China Morning Post, Oliver Chou; the Hong Kong classical music composer and critic, Dennis Wu; the members of the Art Advisory Group of the Macao International Music Festival, Lü Jia, Cao Yi Ji and Yang Yan Di; the Head of the Department of Cultural Events of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Kent Ieong Chi Kin; and the Head of the Division of Performing Arts of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Paula Lei.
