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Arrigo Foa
Arrigo Foa (1900-1981) was born near Milan and was an exceptionally gifted young violinst, entering the Milan conservatory at age 12. In 1921, he was recruited to join the Shanghai Municipal Orchestra by its conductor, also an Italian. He wound up marrying a Wuhan-born Italian woman who worked as a translator at the Italian consulate, and the couple settled in Shanghai. By the time Japan occupied the foreign concessions in Shanghai, Foa had become the orchestra’s assistant conductor, and took over when the then-conductor (the man who had recruited him) chose this occasion to retire. Foa also taught at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music: in both settings, he mentored and sponsored a number of Chinese musicians at a time when many other foreigners rarely did so. (One student he turned down was Nie Er, who later composed the P.R.C.’s national anthem – originally as part of the score for a movie celebrating the resistance against Japan’s seizure of Manchuria.)
Foa and the Shanghai Municipal Orchestra survived WW II largely intact. (Italy was theoretically an ally of Japan, which may have helped, but a bigger factor was probably Foa’s willingness to share the conductor’s platform with some Japanese guest conductors, perform some Japanese music, and incorporate more non-European musicians.) However, they had more trouble navigating the coming of the Revolution. Many musicians left (including Bard’s uncle David), but Foa stayed on, and did what he could to show a cooperative attitude; the orchestra played benefit concerts for the poor, performed new works by Chinese composers, and recruited more Chinese musicians; once China entered the Korean War in 1950, it also performed fund-raising concerts for the war effort. But in 1952, he was dismissed from his position at the Conservatory, and then from the Orchestra as well; no explanation was given, though one person was told that this was part of a campaign against “foreign colonizers.” In 1953, Foa was recruited as conductor of what was then still the Sino-British Orchestra, but would soon become the Hong Kong Philharmonic; Bard played a major role in the recruitment.
Foa remained with the Hong Kong Philharmonic until 1969, presiding over its increasing professionalization, its move to City Hall, and its growing international stature. He died in 1981, and is buried in the Jewish Cemetery at Happy Valley.
a professional orchestra would need broader support
Bard calls for orchestra in China Mail 1948:
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(Source: China Mail, 1948.)
Hong Kong newspapers across the political spectrum
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(Source: South China Morning Post, Apr 23, 1957.)
