By Zo? Shen

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Chinese Symphonies on Maritime Silk Road

By Zo? Shen

The China Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2016 Tour of the Maritime Silk Road at the Aula Simfonia Jakarta Concert Hall on April 30

“What a beautiful jasmine flower， its beautiful branches and buds full of wonderful smells.”

The popular Chinese folk song called Mo Li Hua （Jasmine Flower）， an excerpt of which is reflected above， featured in a performance by Indonesian musician Putri Ayu at the Aula Simfonia Jakarta Concert Hall in Indonesia’s capital on April 30， at an event which culminated as the debut of the China Philharmonic Orchestra’s （CPO） 2016 Tour of the Maritime Silk Road.

More than 300 people including Chinese and Indonesian officials were in attendance. Among those were Xie Feng， the Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia， Baharuddin Jusuf Habibie， former Indonesian President，Bondan Gunawangd， Indonesia-China Friendship Association Chairman， and an upbeat local audience.

Former Indonesian President Baharuddin Jusuf Habibie （right） with an orchestra member

The Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xie Feng（fourth left） with VIP guests after the performance

Following the performance of Mo Li Hua，the CPO performed a symphonic track based on the Indonesian folk song Ayo Mama， a dynamic piece very familiar to Indonesians. Up next was Er Quan Ying Yue （The Moon Reflected on Erquan Spring）， arguably the most well known piece of Erhu music-a twostring instrument also known as a “Chinese violin”.

Other symphonies at the Jakarta performance included Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor， performed by CPO’s young violinist Liu Rui， and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major， conducted by Xia Xiaotang. the performance was well received by the audience.

“that was the best symphony I have ever heard in this city，” Habibie said.

During the performance， artists from both China and Indonesia performed on the same stage. Li Nan， the President of the CPO， said that the CPO’s list of symphonies performed was intended to be a reflection of international， Chinese and Indonesian musical classics.

Xia， the CPO conductor， explained that as “symphony” is a combination of words meaning “agreement of sound” and “harmony” in ancient Greek， any kind of music can be featured in a symphony.

Among the most prominent pieces performed included Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major， which Xia said is a piece with much emotion. It is a masterpiece of the German-Austrian classicism period， and its second movement， Allegretto， and fourth movement， Allegro， are among Beethoven’s most famous. Since its foundation in 2000，the CPO has performed a complete set of Beethoven’s nine symphonies numerous times.

The CPO 2016 Tour of the Maritime Silk Road featured performances in three ditherent cities-Jakarta， Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo and Mumbai， India’s largest city.

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To some extent， the philharmonic has become a symbol of people’s love for music. Philharmonic orchestra in the West originates from bandsmen who left their palaces and organized folk ensembles voluntarily. Today， the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra， the Berliner Philharmoniker， and the New York Philharmonic are the top international orchestras in the world， which are named after the philharmonic.

The China Philharmonic Orchestra was established on May 25， 2000， and was preceded by the China Radio Symphony Orchestra. It is a national level symphony orchestra. Gramophone， a monthly UK magazine covering classical music，selected it as one of the world’s 10 most influential orchestras in 2009. Alongside the CPO， the Berliner Philharmoniker，London Symphony Orchestra and New York Philharmonic made the list. The CPO has featured in many prominent shows in China and has traveled to dozens of countries for performances， including the U.S.， Canada， Germany， Austria， U.K.，F(xiàn)rance， Italy， the Vatican and Poland.