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Leisure

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gambling | opium smoking | picnics | music | sport | social visits

Music

There are reports of Chinese opera troupes visiting the gold and tinfields during the nineteenth century.There are also accounts of the music played at Chinese festivals and ceremonies.Reminders of this culturally specific musical tradition whose sounds could be heard in parts of regional New South Wales are photographs of Chinese bands, surviving musical instruments, and descriptions and memories of performances and celebrations.

As some Chinese settled in Australia, they took to western music. Some joined the local town band; some enjoyed evenings gathered around a piano with friends; some formed dance bands which were employed to provide the music for local dances.

Ceremonial Drum. (Smith's Museum, Green Valley Farm, Tingha)

A translation of Chinese characters visible in the photograph tell us: 'Made by Sing Cheong, Canton East, Tai Sun Street'

Cymbal. (Oxley Museum, Wellington)

Doris Yau-Chong Jones explains:

This is one of a pair of brass cymbals. They always come in pairs, and are struck together to make a ringing sound. They are used in a band (for Chinese operas), and processions for weddings and funerals. The Chinese characters written on the cymbal are probably the name of the shop that made the cymbal or the name of the owner.

Gramophone records. (Private collection)

These gramophone records were among goods from the Sam Kee store in Tingha. Translation of the Chinese characters on one of the boxes in which they were stored tells us that the records were sent to Mr Fong Yum (Edward Fong, manager of Sam Kee from the mid 1940s) and some were for his customers. One record sleeve is stamped with the name of 'Sing Sing and Co, Werris Creek'. The recordings are of a variety of Chinese music, songs and opera.

Eric Fong playing Mrs Ruby Hoy's (nee Duck Chong) player piano, Tingha, 1997.

The player piano is stored in the old Sam Kee electrical store in Tingha. There are also a number of piano rolls. Local residents recall evenings spent singing while Mrs Hoy played the piano.