​Kennedy Center Lunar New Year Concert

～ 2017 ～

​On Monday, February 6, 2017, led by Maestro Muhai Tang, the Beijing Symphony Orchestra celebrated Chinese New Year for the second year in a row at the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C.  This year, the program included the world premier of Wind Blows (co-commissioned by Kennedy Center and USCCI), by Chinese American composer Huang Ruo, performed by New York Philharmonic Principal Oboist Liang Wang. The US premiere of the new arrangement of Gustav Mahler’s Song of the Earth featuring traditional Chinese instruments such as Erhu, Bamboo Flute, Guzheng and Pipa was one of the highlights of the evening.  US-China Cultural Institute’s Chair Shirley Young served as program advisor for this celebration of Chinese Lunar New Year in the heart of music and culture in our Nation’s Capital, Washington DC.  

～ 2016～

Chinese New Year: Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center

The culmination of a weekend of events celebrating Chinese New Year, the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra makes its Kennedy Center debut in the Concert Hall. Conducted by Muhai Tang, the orchestra celebrates the fruitful exchange with music from both China and the United States. It features Chinese orchestral music with pianist Haochen Zhang and violinist Dan Zhu, traditional Chinese folk music A Moonlight Night on the Spring River, and pieces by Puccini, Mozart, and Chopin that have become favorites of Chinese audiences. Perhaps the most popular and visible example of a Western composer's intrigue with China is Puccini's Turandot, excerpted for this concert.
 
The weekend will be the first in an annual series of events celebrating Chinese New Year at the Kennedy Center, and also includes Chinese pop music, activities for kids, the Shenzhen Lily Girls' choir, Henan Arts Troupe.

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