An inclusive space

But what is Freespace Jazz Fest expected to achieve for Hong Kong's jazz music practitioners and enthusiasts?

"It is a big boost to developing Hong Kong's jazz scene," Kung says. Among other things, the festival has disproved the widely held notion that jazz is an elitist music genre. "Freespace Jazz Fest has helped increase the audience for jazz to a great extent in this city."

As far as local jazz musicians are concerned, they have everything to gain by getting to share the stage with living legends.

Lo says that Hong Kong jazz musicians jamming with international heavyweights "is a testament" to the confidence and competence achieved by the former lot. Such an opportunity also serves as a major confidence boost for most musicians. "I can imagine the excitement, especially among young musicians."

Jazz scholar and composer Daniel Chu, who is also the author of the scholarly work Digging the Hong Kong Jazz Scene: Past, Present and People, published this year by the Chinese University of Hong Kong, believes that the fact that the Freespace Jazz Fest is getting bigger and better with each passing year shows that Hong Kong has the potential to shape up as the epicenter of jazz in Asia.

Snchez concurs: "Japan has been at the forefront of jazz music for a long time, but Hong Kong is the new jazz destination. Every jazz artist who plays there loves the experience. In Hong Kong, I can team up and play with any local musician."

For their part, Hong Kong jazz musicians too enjoy jamming with fellow musicians who can bring a different note to the mix. "It is the way we learn jazz here," says Lo, who totally loves sharing the stage with the musicians he has mentored.

In Hong Kong jazz is not only about cross-genre experiments but also about cross-generation performances.

If you go

Freespace Jazz Fest 2024

Dates: Oct 24 - 27

Venue: The Box, Freespace and Wonderland, West Kowloon Art Park, West Kowloon Cultural District, Tsim Sha Tsui