Spreading Positivity Through Music as a Form of Compassionate Care

Facing the loss of his loved one, Wan Long Kin, Kelvin finds the power of music in soothing people who are facing death because of sickness.

Realizing there is no current music-related programme for end-of-life comfort and compassionate care, Wan, the former Acting Council Chairperson of the Cultural Association of HKU, came up with the idea of spreading positivity to the sick and the elderly through music concerts.

“As a musician, I truly know that music has the power to soothe people,” said Wan, a fifth-year Civil Engineering student who is also minoring in music.

Last year, with the support of the Yang Tuck Ming and Wong Fung Ying Service Learning Fund from HKU, Wan led the members from the Cultural Association and created a project called “Music Outreach in Care Homes and Hospitals”. As the project coordinator, Wan gathered the HKU musicians and reached out to seek collaboration opportunities.

Wan (left) led the performance at the Jockey Club Home for Hospice.

The music enthusiast, who has also been an orchestra teacher, realized a phenomenon that many students could not afford to take music lessons or play any instruments.

Wan thus worked with Care Action, a government-registered charity that aims to improve the quality of life of the community, to identify and establish links with a variety of service targets, including both primary school students and the elderly.

Throughout the project, Wan and the other HKU musicians have successfully completed a total of five performances, each of which catered to specific service targets.

Wan conducted the performance at SKH St. Matthew's Primary School.

Organizing orchestra performances outside of a concert hall was a challenging task for Wan.

He noted that the primary school's performance location was a tiny indoor school hall with limited space for the band members to arrange their instruments, especially the percussionists. Wan thus talked to the school staff and was able to bring in a total of 30 band members and about 200 students to the hall. The school also helped by running a live broadcast for the pupils in the classroom.

Wan also mentioned that other organization centres have their own activity schedule, which is typically on weekdays and conflicts with the band members' class schedules. However, he saw it as a mixed blessing since it provided more HKU musicians the chance to experience using their musical talents to serve the community.