It was drizzling in Kuala Lumpur in March. Good rain at the beginning of the season signifies a beautiful year in Malaysia.
On March 17, a new version of the Dream of Red Mansions Piano Concerto by Claudia Yang, a Chinese-born Malaysian pianist, and Juro Fekkett, a renowned Hungarian composer, was performed by the China National Symphony Orchestra, performed by Tang Muhai, at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Malaysia. The performance won an enthusiastic response from the thousands of people in the audience.
Chinese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Malaysia, former Malaysian Tourism Minister Tan Sri Huang Yanyan, members of the Malaysian royal family and other VIPs took a group photo with the performers during the day
Before the concert began, the national anthems of Malaysia and China stood up, demonstrating the close relationship and cultural interaction between the two governments. The concert attracted Malaysian celebrities, Chinese, overseas Chinese and so on to watch. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to Malaysia and his wife, Director of the Chinese Cultural Department in Malaysia Zhang Jiaxin, member of the Malaysian Royal Family and wife of the Minister of Tourism and Culture of Malaysia Datin Seri Haflin Saiful , former Malaysian Minister of Tourism Tan Sri Wong Yan Yan, Secretary General of the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism and Culture and Chairman of Tourism Malaysia Dato Siew Ka Wei, President of Malaysian Belt and Road Chamber of Commerce Dato Iskandar Sarudin, President of Malaysia-China Friendship Association Dato More than 1,000 people watched the performance, including Majid, IOI Group chairman Tan Sri Lee Shen Jing, Yang Chung-li Group Datuk Yang Su Min, and the Russian Ambassador to Malaysia.
Chinese-malaysian pianist Claudia Young
CAI Wu, Chairman of the Council of the National Arts Fund, also sent a congratulatory letter: I am glad to hear that the "Malaysia-China Friendship Belt and Road, A Dream of Red Mansions Symphony Concert" sponsored by the National Arts Fund of China was performed at the National Center for the Performing Arts of Malaysia. On behalf of the China National Arts Fund, I would like to extend my warm congratulations. China and Malaysia are friendly neighbors facing each other across the sea. The friendship between the two peoples dates back to ancient times and the two countries are closely related in geographical, cultural and even blood ties. As one of the four great classical novels of China, A Dream of Red Mansions carries profound traditional Chinese cultural connotation and is loved by people all over the world. The piano and symphony concert of A Dream of Red Mansions is not only a useful attempt to promote the innovative development of China's fine culture, but also an important event for China and Malaysia to strengthen cultural exchanges and enhance people-to-people bond. It will play a positive role in enhancing mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples. I wish this event a complete success and let more people benefit from the colorful culture created by mankind. We would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere New Year greetings to the guests and artists attending this event!
Since its world premiere at the Concert Hall of the National Museum of China in 2014, Piano Concerto of a Dream of Red Mansions has been performed in Russia, Hungary, Kazakhstan and other countries, giving foreign music lovers a taste of the profound heritage of Chinese culture.
Compared with the first version of Piano Concerto in Red Mansions, the new version has more personality and appeal. The creators have endowed the work with a new, different from traditional music and more international musical language and creation concept, adding a brand new artistic expression for the Chinese classical literature masterpiece. The new Piano Concerto of a Dream of Red Mansions was performed by Claudia Yang, who was praised by maestro Maazel as a "pianist who can play with heart", and by the China National Symphony Orchestra, which is a famous conductor master Tang Muhai. The beauty of artistic conception and intention in the spirit of Chinese classical art permeated the hearts of the National Theatre of Malaysia and the Malaysian and Chinese people along with the moving melody.
As a key project supported by the National Arts Fund of China, the Piano Concerto in Red Mansions was selected as the first stop of its international tour in Malaysia. It has become a key project of China-Malaysia friendly exchanges along the Belt and Road, and has attracted wide attention from all walks of life in Malaysia. Malaysia's Ministry of Tourism and Culture, China Communications Construction, China Construction Bank, Beibu Gulf Port Group, National Airlines of China and other institutions have given strong support to the concert. As an important event of friendship and cultural exchange between China and Malaysia, the concert was also elaborately-designed. In addition to Dvorak's Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Piano Concerto of A Dream of Red Mansions and Guan Xia's Symphonic Fantasia Farewell My Concubine, the audience was able to appreciate the charm of international expression of traditional Chinese culture and art. At the end of the concert, Susan, a 13-year-old girl from China, played Getaran Jiwa(" Throbbing of the Soul "), a traditional Malaysian folk song, on her violin, accompanied by Ms Claudia Yang. Thousands of audience were deeply moved by the familiar melody and sincere performance. Thunderous applause broke out on the spot, pushing the atmosphere to the climax. Malaysian people from all walks of life spoke highly of the performance and artistic expression of Chinese artists, and praised the Chinese literary masterpiece A Dream of Red Mansions in the form of a symphony piano concerto. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak delivered a congratulatory message, saying that the concert is a bridge between the peoples of the two countries, vigorously promotes the cultural exchanges between the two countries, enhances the friendship between the two peoples, is a practical implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative of the Chinese government, and is the best example of cultural exchanges between the two countries.
The Chinese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Malaysia pointed out in his congratulatory message during the day that China and Malaysia are linked by mountains and rivers and are inseparable by blood. The exchanges between the two countries go back a long time and the friendship between our peoples spans a thousand years. Since ancient times, Malaysia has been an important country along the Maritime Silk Road, so this performance is not only an artistic feast combining Chinese and Western cultures, but also a spiritual feast of traditional Chinese cultural values. The concert will add more Chinese colors to Kuala Lumpur, a famous city of diversity, and also become the beginning of the Belt and Road international cultural exchange brand.
A Dream of Red Mansions Piano Concerto can be traced back to the producer's creative idea of "traditional classical contemporary expression". Xinyi Culture interprets Chinese classical culture through the music vocabulary widely understood by the international community, and makes a successful innovative exploration for the world promotion of Chinese classical literature classics.
