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MedArt China Orphan Outreach Charity Concert
There’s an old saying: “music tames the savage beast”, and in our world there are beasts aplenty. Not only the type with roars that leave you trembling in fear, but also silent ones that plague you relentlessly, leaving you stranded, trapped and alone. Permanent confinement – whether elderly individuals stuck in hospices, mental patients confined in psychiatric wards, or criminals behind cold steel bars – is a beast that devours many.
MedArt was founded in 2003 by doctors and musicians who wanted to make a difference by bringing music to these isolated individuals. MedArt believes that while music may not reverse the effects of old age, unravel the tangles of a tortured mind or undo a regretted crime, it can attempt to soothe the soul. Bill Condon, MedArt’s Chairman of Fundraising says one reason why their work has generated such overwhelming responses is because people realise “the actual power of the music.” He adds: “They realise that people care, that they haven’t been forgotten.” This fortnight is the third edition of the MedArt China Orphan Outreach Fundraising Concert, and Condon and crew have got a few aces up their sleeves.
The highlight of the concert to many will be the opening number Love Along the Way, a piece composed by an inmate serving a life sentence at Shek Pik Prison, and performed by former principal percussionist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Ted Atkatz and local singer Peco Chui. Another highlight is renowned violinist Chen Xi performing her rendition of Butterfly Lovers violin concerto on a 1708 “Ruby” Stradivarius, on loan from Chicago.
This idea of this concert was born out of a 2005 MedArt project, the China Orphan Outreach, which aimed to provide medical aid to orphans in the Mainland who often suffer from life-threatening conditions such as exstrophic bladder (bladder born outside the body), myelodysplasia (bone marrow disorder), and hermaphroditism (one who has both male and female reproductive organs).
With all of the crew and performers donating their time for free, this concert represents a fine testimony to the human spirit. For Condon, this is just a continuation of its most prominent cause: to bring joy to those stuck in confinement. He also sees it as a fundamental duty to deliver the message that prisoners are also human beings. “People in prison are being punished, rightfully so, for the crimes they have committed,” says Condon. “But they still shouldn’t be forgotten.”
Heidi Yeung
The concert will be held at Cultural Centre on July 11. Tickets: 3549 6930
For the story of how Bill Condon got involved with MedArt, check out his interview in Big Smog.
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