Hong Kong Arts Development Council Expresses Deepest Condolences on the Passing of Renowned Composer, Mr Koo Ka-fai, Joseph

Hong Kong Arts Development Council (HKADC) expresses great sorrow over the passing of renowned composer, music arranger and conductor, Mr Koo Ka-fai, Joseph and extends its deepest condolences to Mr Koo’s family.

Devoting himself to a music career since the 1960s, Mr Koo composed more than 1,200 songs over the decades, including popular classics for TV drama series such as Hotel, Luk Siu Fung, A House is Not a Home, Conflict, Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre, The Fatal Irony, The Bund, and Beneath the Lion Rock etc. He not only brought Canto-pop to the mainstream and promoted the local music scene to a splendid era, but also made Below the Lion Rock a symbol of the spirit of Hong Kong.

In addition to TV drama theme songs, Mr Koo also composed, arranged and scored music for Shaw Brothers films, winning a string of awards such as Best Music in the Golden Horse Awards in 1965, 1967 and 1977 respectively, as well as the Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Film Score in 1991.

Mr Koo tirelessly promoted the development of local music scene and received the “Life Achievement Award” of the Hong Kong Arts Development Awards 2010 by HKADC and an Honorary Doctorate in Music by the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 2011. Furthermore, he garnered the “Hall of Fame” award from the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong in 1997 and honorary doctorate degrees from the Education University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2014. In 2015, Mr Koo was awarded the Gold Bauhinia Star by the HKSAR Government in recognition of his significant contribution to Hong Kong music.

HKADC expresses its sincere condolences on the passing of Mr Koo in memory of his myriad heartfelt and immortal melodies that have accompanied Hong Kong people for decades. His departure is indisputably a great loss to the local music scene. His accomplishment and devotion to the arts will be long remembered.