The line separating good from bad of a concert passes not through its box office, public attention or budget—but right through the after-concert satisfaction of the audience and the acclaim from the experts within the industry.

I just produced a charity concert You’ve Got a Friend (好在有朋友) . Any man who said “I am the producer” is actually “being produced”—his creative concert teammates such as the director, singer, video producer, band leader, stage designer, lighting designer, sound engineer, costume designer and even marketing manager all have a say over the concert, and often a director’s say is subject to their says. My role in this concert is, as a result, to try my best to inspire them as to what I want, and develop the overall team’s strength by allowing them to do what they want and yet follow my desired goals. The transformation of an artistic vision from different human factors to the final agreement on the show is surely a very exciting “chemical process”! I am proud that the 6 shows have been successfully completed. Big thanks to the performers Susan Wong (黃翠珊) and Brian Chow (周國豐) and other teammates. The audience greatly enjoyed the concert and all fellow members got a sense of accomplishment.

One has to be picky and critical in the creative business. If he is not, he will not have the option of longevity. Concert failure often comes from the uncritical acceptance of common assumptions and standards.

When I am offered an opportunity to produce an concert, I will usually ask myself 3 critical questions:

1. what are the target audience of the show?
2. what are the attractive features that the audience want?
3. what is the meaningful message associated with the performance? (The last question is more my personal stubbornness. I can only be motivated by and satisfied with a work that is meaningful!)

Often, gathering a group of familiar teammates is the important starting point for preparing a great pop concert. A good team can collectively help you generate useful ideas and ensure a reliable result. Yet, without new blood, success can become stale. I will usually get 30% of new comers to join my old team so that more creative possibilities can add up.

Audience nowadays choose performances wisely and the ticket price is the consideration for what they carefully want in return. A fair deal is not just what an artist thinks of himself highly, but whether the audience equally derive great satisfaction with the show. After producing several plays and concerts for the general public, my observations of what the audience in Hong Kong want from a pop concert have long been as follows:

• the concert should not be too long since people here are generally impatient and have too many thing to handle at home.

• pop concerts cannot be too serious. Audience also like the singer to chat casually with them and often make them laugh by telling jokes.
• the stage design shall offer colourful patterns and elements, plus a lot of amazing special effects.
• the concert shall invite special guest stars to appear and sing with the singer, and the extra performance will mean better worth for the audience’s money spent.
• they dislike concerts in which they are not allowed to use mobile phones to take photos (what a bizarre behaviour!).
• a singer shall restyle himself or herself with glomorous costume and make-up several times during the concert in order to suit the mood of different songs. These changes are considered as the necessary attractions of a singer.
• the audience like a nice balance of happy and sad songs in a concert. The singer cannot remain sedentary and should ideally dance at least for 1 to 2 songs.

Albert Einstein said, “Once you stop learning, you start dying.” In the creative and entertainment world, the ability to continuously adapt to new demands, cope with new situations and acquire new knowledge is the reason why some people are enjoying a long career and some just disappear rapidly, like a meteorite.

This article can also be found at the following sites: