Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to identify issues concerning recent street music (or busking) activities in Hong Kong (HK) that have not, to date, been given full consideration in related discussions. Although there exists a considerable amount of work on street performance around the world; little, if indeed anything, is known about the internal factors affecting street musicians as a group of common practitioners. HK was chosen to provide the context in which the paper elaborates on its framework; this is justified by the city’s unusual lack of public space in relation to the recent growth of its street performance activities. Through street performing in HK, the author used his own experiences and observations to gather insights into street musicians. The paper does not intend to promote HK street performance; instead, by clarifying internal issues among street musicians, it hopes to inform the overall understanding of street performance in HK. Findings of the paper were limited by the time available for participant observation. It is suggested that future study should attempt to assess the extent to which a community of street musicians exists in HK.