PMA Music Foundation

Music to serve | Music to heal | Music to enjoy | Music to inspire

Founded in 2003, PMA Music Foundation (PMF) worked with renowned musicians and inspirational figures around the world to touch lives through music, to bring hope and care to the needy ones. As of today, having organized over 120 events in Hong Kong, the beneficiaries include more than 20 local or global social organizations which serve children of blind, deaf, autism, mentally or physically handicapped, cancer, illiterates, children from deprived families as well as the elderly. 

In the past 17 years, PMF partnered with Nick Vujicic, the limbless motivated speaker, to promote love and positive attitudes through sharing and music. PMF also founded the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra of Hong Kong (MYO) and launched the Music Angel Program, providing professional music training and advocating serving through music respectively.

Life Without Limits

Since 2008, PMF assisted Nick Vujicic, the limbless motivational speaker, for all activities held in the Asia Pacific region, reaching people in Japan, South Korea, China, the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand and Cambodia, bringing good music with motivational message to inspire people from all walks of life to dream big, never give up, and seek for a greater purpose in life, outreaching to half a billion people worldwide.

PMF continued to work along with Nick Vujicic advocating positive life attitude and had the first publication tailor made for children – Give Me a Hug published in 2013. In 2014, the second book of the series – Dream BIG and the third book of the sequel, Believe, Belong, Become were launched in May and November respectively. The 4th book, Make a Difference, was published in 2015 promoting anti-bullying.

Besides children books, two CDs were also published under PMF and offered to the public for free. The first one was produced by the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra of Hong Kong with local songwriter Peco Chui. The other one was an album delivering hope and love by having Nick Vujicic as the lyricist for all 12 original tracks in the album. Various local producers and artists were involved in the production on a voluntary basis. The production cost was brought by a series of fundraising events and the support from the community.

From Music Education to Music for Education

PMF realized the significant impact of music as a mean to educate the young generation and founded the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra of Hong Kong (MYO) in 2003. Consisting of 8 orchestras in 4 different levels, MYO provided professional training and performance opportunities for over 2,000 young members, of over 120 schools.

Beyond achieving artistic excellence, PMF and MYO also believe “Music Excellence with a Soul” as well as to serve the community through music. PMF curated and organized various events serving this mission. Joining hands with international and local inspirational figures such as limbless life warrior Nick Vujicic (U.S.), one-handed violinist Adrian Anantawan (Canada), armless hornist Felix Klieser (Germany), Hollywood animation master Davy Liu (U.S.), 4-fingered pianist Lee Hee-Ah (Korea), local blind singer Pinky Li, autistic and mentally challenged pianist Lau Chi Ming, and visually impaired pianist Li Hin. PMF and MYO worked with all these figures with the view of delivering their positive messages and values to the public via music. 

These events, together with multi dimensions and cross over, further elevated the messages of the main themes with powerful music to the audiences. Since 2003, we had organized concerts crossing over classical music with mime, animation, drama and dance. PMF continues to explore the limitless of music by curating classical music events along with different art forms bringing a new perspective and new experience to the local audience, whether it be visual, auditory or kinesthetic. 

Curated over 120 events in Hong Kong in various indoor/ outdoor performance venues, PMF and MYO recognize the power of social media and believe that it could be a channel to reach more and more people regardless of their origin. Therefore, flash mob performances videos were produced and shared on the Internet since 2014. The videos received extremely high acclaims, especially the one collaborating with the Hong Kong Airport Authority in 2016. MYO also became one of the ambassadors promoting Hong Kong upon the invitation of Hong Kong Tourism Board since 2015, performing on behalf of Hong Kong in and outside Hong Kong. Our flash mob viewership in YouTube hit over 2,300,000.

Music Angel Program Pioneer

Music Angel Program initiative was launched since the foundation establishment. The program aims to groom a serving heart in the young generation by using music to connect the children with the community, especially the disadvantaged. Performance visits were organized at elderly homes, community centres and other local NGO centres serving various disadvantaged groups. The program was endorsed by public figures such as the late Barbara Fei, renowned pianist and music educator Nancy Loo, the former Head of Music Department at CUHK Professor Chan Wing Wah and many others.

After a series of fundraising concerts and with the keen support from the community, PMF has started the first music training program tailor-made for local autistic students in January 2019. Music Angel Orchestra (MAO) is the continuation and expansion of the Music Angel Program initiative. No longer being limited to serve the local disadvantaged group in Hong Kong with music performance, PMF offers ensemble training to local autistic students who show potential in music in view to equipping them with performance skill and experience as well as establishing a new identity for them in society. 

The Largest Inclusive Orchestra in Hong Kong

In 2019, PMF founded the True Colors Symphony (TCS), which was the largest inclusive orchestra in Hong Kong. TCS promoted the idea of “Be True, Be Colors” that it is our differences that makes us shine. It aimed to promote true inclusiveness, harmony and respect of people from all walks of lives in our society and members of the symphony included people with visual or hearing impairment, physical disabilities, autism, intellectually challenges, senior citizens, ethnic minorities, youth and families. 

TCS consisted of 105 orchestra and 66 choir members. One-third of the orchestra members were differently-abled people and ethnic minorities, two third of them were senior citizens, children, youths and families. Among the differently-abled members, 33.3% was autistic or intellectually challenged, 25% was senior citizens, 20.8% was hearing impaired, 10.4% was Visually Impaired, 6.3% was ethnic minorities, and 4.2% was physically handicapped. The debut concert “When You Believe” was held in Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall on January 12, 2020 to share the message of hope with everyone. Audience in the hall witnessed the hard work that every member in TCS had invested, and true colors of every person in the performance.