The 9th New York Chinese Contemporary Music Festival opens at Carnegie Hall

China News Service, New York, October 3 (Reporter Wang Fan) The 9th New York Chinese Contemporary Music Festival opened on October 2, local time, at Carnegie Hall in New York, USA. With the theme of "Chasing Dreams", this year's music festival focuses on the struggle stories of Chinese American pioneers and also presents new works by contemporary Chinese composers.

The evening’s opening concert was kicked off by the Bard Chinese and Western Orchestra. The orchestra performed Zhang Zheng's "Ode to Wind and Ya", Wang Danhong's "Forever Shandandan", and Lu Weijun's "Flicking the Fingers" with pipa player Yang Jin as the soloist.

In the second half, the New York Chinese Contemporary Music Festival Chamber Orchestra took the stage and performed the one-act opera "The Crack" with the actors. The play, co-created by composer Huang Ruo and playwright Henry Hwang, retells the story of Chinese-American architect Maya Lin's design of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington.

From new works rooted in Chinese musical tradition to large-scale works that tell the story of the Chinese-American experience in the United States, the works in this concert have their own unique themes and musical languages. Different works blend the stories of Chinese Americans "chasing dreams" with Chinese traditions. This feature will also continue to the subsequent performances of the music festival.

Cai Jindong, artistic director and conductor of the New York Chinese Contemporary Music Festival, said that music plays an important role in maintaining hope and preserving historical memory. He hopes to tell stories through music that closely connect the people of China and the United States, and to demonstrate the common dreams, resilience and creativity of both sides.

According to reports, this music festival will last until October 11. On the last two days, Li Shaosheng's symphonic suite "Flying Sky" will be performed, as well as the symphonic oratorio "The Iron Man's Golden Nail", composed by Zhou Long and lyrics by Su Wei. The latter reproduces the history of Chinese laborers participating in the construction of the transcontinental railroad in the United States in 1869. In addition, the U.S.-China Music Forum and the Chinese and American Folk Song Concert of the Choir of the School of Music Education of the Central Conservatory of Music will be held during the festival.