Foreign orchestra and media weigh in on hefty issue but railway giant insists the rule must stay until assessment of safety risks is complete
OLIVER CHOU AND LAI YING-KIT
PUBLISHED : Tuesday, 29 September, 2015, 12:00am
UPDATED : Tuesday, 29 September, 2015, 3:54am
Jason Lai, principal conductor of the orchestra at Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore.
News of a "ridiculous" ban on taking cellos on board MTR trains has gone beyond Hong Kong's shores as British media and a visiting orchestra takes issue with a public transport rule that is non-existent in the West.
Jason Lai, principal conductor of the orchestra at Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore, said he was aware of the ban forbidding large instruments on the MTR and had alerted the school prior to its debut concert in Hong Kong tomorrow.
"I have warned the school about this policy before the tour," Lai, a former cellist and now conductor of Singapore's top music school, said yesterday.
That passenger had been expelled from MTR station for carrying instruments measuring more than 130cm.
Days earlier, The Strad, a top London-based magazine about string instruments launched in 1890, reported on a Hong Kong student being warned and asked to leave a train station because of his cello last week.
That passenger was among at least three music students who had been expelled from MTR stations for carrying instruments measuring more than 130cm.
Lai, 41, said the eight cellists of his band would perform with expensive instruments and taking the MTR would not be viable.
"But this story does really mean a lot to me, seeing the ridiculousness of this policy that you, as taxpayers, are not allowed to bring a cello on public transport."
A staff member of the orchestra confirmed the players would commute on coaches between their hotel and City Hall, where they would play to a full-house audience in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the independence of Singapore.
The Strad, a top London-based magazine about string instruments launched in 1890, reported on a Hong Kong student being warned and asked to leave a train station because of his cello last week."While the ban doesn't affect our group on this particular trip, we are sorry to know such a rule exists," the employee said.
Lai said he had never encountered any problem commuting with the cello on the London Underground, nor had he seen any ban on large musical instruments on Singapore's MRT trains since moving there in 2010.
Francis Li Shing-kee, operations chief of the MTR Corporation, said its regulations on oversized luggage would apply until a review on rules governing bulky items ended in four weeks.
Li said they would heed the community's views while assessing the safety risks and balancing the needs of commuters. "What if accidents happened after we exercised discretion before the review was complete?" he asked.
"These safety issues are not what Hongkongers want to see."
Local musicians will press ahead with plans to protest at Tai Wai station on Saturday to reiterate their right to take large instruments on board trains.
Mavis Lung, a teacher of the dulcimer, a string instrument, has seen more than 3,500 people sign up since she posted on Facebook the protest, "Let's bring our musical instruments to take the MTR". Calling off the protest would be "difficult, as there have been no promises" from rail officials, she said.
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1862199/foreign-orchestra-media-weigh-hefty-issue-cello-ban-hong-kongs-mtr
