Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
- Yeit Hoy
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
Toronto Yet Hoy Cantonese Music Club was founded in 1964 by some of the members of Jin Hung Sing Music Club and Ship Thoy Yen Chinese Benevolent Society. Founding members of the club included Ho Sing-Wah 何醒華, William Kwok Fong Hoy 許國光 (commonly known as Billy Hoy), Raymond Yew Kwong Jai 謝耀光, Beatrice Jai 廖瑤華 (Lew Yew Wah), etc. In 1969, the club was moved to 111 Dundas Street West in Toronto's Chinatown. Successive presidents of the Club included Fung Ying 馮盈, Wong Yau Man 黃友文, Lau Wing 劉榮, Ma Jam 馬欽, Cheung Chik 張植, Ng Nai Man 吳乃文, Tong Sze 湯時, Wong Nang 黃能, Lau Sing 劉盛, etc. In the early days, club members were taught by the renowned wusheng (martial men) actor Shao Kun Lun (1910-1989).
Usually, the Club would focus on one or two major Cantonese Opera titles each year if there was a plan for annual show.
In 1964, Yet Hoy performed “Double Shot Lu Wenlong 雙槍陸文龍” and “The Golden Bracelet 金釧龍鳳配” for the first time; in 1965, it performed “Qin Qiong Selling His Horse 秦瓊賣馬” (featuring Shao Kun Lun and Billy Hoy) and “The Fairy Shepherdess 仙女牧羊” (featuring Beatrice Jai and Julie Jai); in 1967, Yu Lai Zan 余麗珍 joined the Club and performed “The Heroine Who Conquered the Four Gates 劉金定斬四門”; in 1968, it performed “The Legend of the White Snake 白蛇傳”; In 1970, it performed “Hu Bu Gui / Time to Go Home 胡不歸” (featuring Beatrice Jai); in 1971, it performed “The Night Sacrifice of the Two Concubines by the Emperor Chen 陳後主夜祭雙妃/胭脂並化合歡墳” ; in 1972, it performed “Romance of the Phoenix Chamber 鳳閣恩仇未了情” for the anniversary celebration of Lung Kong Kung Shaw Brotherhood; in 1973, it performed “The Revenge 血雁重歸燕未歸”; in 1974, it performed “A Sweet Girl's Fancies 玉女凡心” and “The Legend of the White Snake 白蛇傳” (both featuring famous Cantonese Opera actress Leung Shiu Sum 梁少心), a fund-raising production for the Mon Sheong Foundation; in 1975, it performed “Praying to the Moon 雙仙拜月亭” and “Romance of the Phoenix Chamber 鳳閣恩仇未了情”; in 1976, it performed “The Golden Bracelet 金釧龍鳳配” again (featuring Li Xiaomei); in 1977, it performed " Lovers' Tears 鴛鴦淚” (featuring Li Xiaomei); and finally in 1982, it performed “Liu Bei Crosses the River to Meet His Bride 劉備過江招親” (featuring Billy Hoy) to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Lung Kong Kung Shaw Brotherhood.
Since then, there have not been any full-scale performances on stage, instead the Club focused more on singing than acting. Every Saturday and Monday, members gathered together to practice their Cantonese operatic songs; occasionally, they were invited by different organizations to perform at different events; there were also concerts and banquets to celebrate the Spring Festival and the Club’s anniversaries each year. The Yet Hoy Cantonese Music Club has not been active since 1990s.