Britain's royal orchestra to return to China for 1st time since 2017-Xinhua

Britain's royal orchestra to return to China for 1st time since 2017

Source: Xinhua| 2024-08-02 21:43:45|Editor: huaxia

LONDON, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Britain's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) will return to stages in China next week with its first tour there since 2017.

"It's a tremendous honor for the RPO to be returning to China after quite a long absence," Huw Davies, RPO acting managing director, said during a press briefing on Friday.

The London-based orchestra debuted in China in the early 1970s and has regularly toured in various Chinese cities in the following decades. Its last China tour was held in 2017.

Noting that RPO has forged partnerships with many cultural institutions in China "in a desire to exchange knowledge and learn from each other," Davies said the orchestra is looking forward to "rekindling those friendships and relationships" and strengthening bonds with China to bring the joy of orchestral music to a wider audience.

The RPO will kick off this year's China tour on Thursday next week in Beijing. Over 11 days, it will present nine concerts with an orchestra of 94 musicians in seven cities, including Shanghai, Shenzhen, Wuhan, and Nanjing.

The tour will highlight "a blend of British, Chinese and Russian music," featuring pieces such as Benjamin Britten's Four Sea Interludes, Excerpts from the Crouching Tiger Cello Concerto by Tan Dun, and Symphony No. 5 by Shostakovich.

Vasily Petrenko, music director of the RPO, told Xinhua that they expect to show how different cultures and music genres can "merge together."

"The more we know about each other's cultures, the more links between us humans exist. For us, it's not just a musical mission or cultural mission; it's a mission to bring our countries closer together," he said, adding that he hopes music and culture can serve as a tool to unite the world.

Founded in 1946, the RPO has performed in venues across Britain and toured internationally, including in the United States, Japan, Germany, and Spain.

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