On the evening of January 31, the closing ceremony of the 2024 Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Guangdong) International Youth Week (hereinafter referred to as "YMCG") was held at the Hong Kong Cultural Center.
This is also the last ** meeting of Daniel Harding, director of **Zhou**, on this trip to the Bay Area. After the last master class the next day, the ** week that lasted for more than a week came to an end.
When walking on the stage, looking at the youthful faces of the players of the YMCG orchestra, Harding said movingly: "In the past ten days, you have grown rapidly under the guidance of your mentor, learned to warm people's hearts with **, and rejuvenated by you. I'm so proud of you! ”
From January 20th to February 1st, across Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong, 4 symphony concerts, 2 chamber music sessions, 2 salons, a one-day outreach city walk, and a 10-day rehearsal ...... for the mastersThe YMCG Orchestra musicians have made precious memories. For the first time, the first week co-organized by the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Xinghai ** Hall, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and Macao Orchestra surpassed previous editions in terms of depth and breadth of cultural synergy.
More than ten days of art journey, the fusion of tradition and modernity, the intersection of Chinese and Western cultures, world-class masters and new forces gather here, tell the stories of China, the Bay Area, and Guangdong, and show the world the beautiful Bay Area with the Zhou as a window.
A dream trip to the home of the youth of the Bay Area.
Amid the applause, the young man sitting at the concertmaster of the symphony orchestra stood up and greeted Harding with a smile as he walked briskly backstage. The bow is raised lightly, and a piece of music is ready.
He is Lin Ruifeng, the principal of this year's ** Zhou Orchestra and a young violinist. In the last ** Zhou Orchestra, he was there. In July 2022, he became the only "final gold winner" in the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition in Shanghai; In October 2023, he won the gold medal at the 3rd Viktor Tretyakov International Violin Competition. From ordinary orchestra musicians to orchestra principals, the YMCG Orchestra and Lin Ruifeng have witnessed each other's growth.
I should have been the first in the academy, and we had a full schedule for nearly half a month, but I felt very excited. Lin Ruifeng not only participated in the rehearsal of the first week, but also participated in this year's opening ceremony. The exchange with the orchestra's mentors gave him a new understanding of collaborative performances: "We always thought that cooperation means that different people have to make the same sound. But Harding and Yu Long, both conductors, tell us the importance of individuality. ”
Creation requires some spontaneous expression, which is particularly important. Harding believes that what a mentor can do is to give opportunities and create as many opportunities as possible for young people to discover the great charm and fun of **.
We had a fantastic week! Xu Li, a double bass player from the ** College of Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), recalls the performance experience of ** Zhou and is still very excited. "We used our respective instruments to unleash our passion for ** on stage, and everyone showed their own style. ”
Cui Linhan, a young conductor who participated in the opening performance, graduated from Xinghai ** Academy and was selected for the Los Angeles Philharmonic 2022 2023 Dudamel Conducting Program in 2022. Returning to the Bay Area to participate in the YMCG international cultural event was seen as an unusual new experience for her. "The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is inherently diverse, inclusive, and respectful of differences, which are the catalysts for great creativity. Cui Linhan said.
Why do you want to do a world-oriented youth ** week in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area?
*Conductor Yu Long, Chairman of the Zhou Artistic Committee, explains: "The Greater Bay Area is not only an economic bay area, but also a cultural bay area. The prosperity and development of culture will provide rich humanistic nourishment for young people and pave a bridge for their growth and development. In turn, these young people will become the backbone of cultural development in the Greater Bay Area, China and Asia. ”
The imagination of Hong Kong's post-95s composers in the Bay Area.
I hope that through this music, everyone can feel an upward force in the Bay Area. * At the meeting, Hong Kong post-95 composer Liang Haoyi introduced his work "Ambition of the Sky Dome: Dawan Huazhang" commissioned by the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra in Mandarin, Cantonese and English respectively.
This is the first time that the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area International Youth ** Week has opened a mechanism for commissioned creations. ** Week has always encouraged originality, and from 2017 to 2020, there was a batch of improvisational performances every year. And Liang Haoyi's work not only kicked off the ** meeting, but also the world premiere of the track.
As a post-95 young composer in the Greater Bay Area, Liang Haoyi as one of the composers for the film "Changjin Lake" won the 19th China Film Huabiao Award for Outstanding Film, and the soundtrack composed for "Red Sea Operation" and "Shuimen Bridge of Changjin Lake" is also a popular work in the industry.
If you can speak Cantonese, maybe you can feel the rhythm of Cantonese from **, and even be able to hear the Cantonese words hanging on your lips; If you have never traveled to the Greater Bay Area, you may hear and see the night at the beginning of the night and the twinkling lights from the melody of the trumpet at the beginning of the work. Liang Haoyi interprets this new work in this way.
In order to capture the rich and colorful essence of the history and culture of Guangzhou, the core city of the Greater Bay Area, he revisited Shamian after nearly 20 years and got creative inspiration from the colorful buildings and the flow of people like crucian carp.
*No language, no barriers, everyone can build their own understanding and imagination of the Greater Bay Area through **, communicate freely in **, and put their hearts and minds at ease. Liang Haoyi said.
This is the charm of ** week.
Harding, who served as the director, specially brought a team of mentors from different orchestras, hoping to let the young ** family gain the influence of different styles.
Although it is a cliché to be able to cross the language barrier, I would say that empathy in ** is a constant reminder that we are not alone. Whether you are from Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macau, Berlin, Paris, there is always a ** moment, so that you and I are honest and connected. Harding said. According to him, after this year's exploration, he and Yu Long have formulated a plan for the next five years, which will further promote the development of the Bay Area ** Week.
The Bay Area tour of the world's top celebrities.
*Zhou's art trip is also an in-depth trip to the Bay Area for mentors and students from all over the world.
From 2017 to 2023, a total of 21 countries, 31 cities and 28 cities in China participated in the week, including Harvard University, Yale University** School**, Curtis** College**, Royal College ** and other world-class universities.
Participating instructors include principal performers from the Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, London Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Curtis**, Juilliard, Harvard, and other institutions.
For them, ** Week is undoubtedly a window to understand the Bay Area and China.
In this year's ** week outreach activity, the YMCG Orchestra and the international ** celebrities came to a **City Walk at four stations where the ancient and the modern are blended. The first stop is the Cantonese Opera Art Museum on Enning Road, where Xiguan is located, which was once a gathering place for Cantonese opera activities and a gathering place for famous Cantonese opera singers.
On October 2, 2009, Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao jointly submitted that Cantonese opera was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This is a successful cooperation between the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in the field of arts, and it also demonstrates the people-to-people ties and cultural ties in the Bay Area.
After the performance, the organizer specially prepared a classic Cantonese opera excerpt "Battlefield Mandarin League", bringing the Cantonese rhyme of southern red beans. The well-known artists from the Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestra listened with relish and enjoyed it. They were even more amazed by the Cantonese opera exhibition inside the museum.
See the old people! * Tutor Zhou, Principal Flute Gareth Davis of the London Symphony Orchestra, said, "This kind of traditional opera is really fascinating. I have listened to many Western composers who have been inspired by this kind of music, and I have also encountered Cantonese opera in the films** that I have participated in the performance and recording. ”
Carl Tolsson, a percussionist from Sweden, marveled at the beauty of Cantonese percussion: "This is the first time I have heard this kind of percussion performance in a traditional opera, and it is amazing and very impactful. The instrument itself is also very beautiful. ”
*Zhou's instructors and students also visited the exhibition of Chaozhou wood carving at the provincial expo. After the visit, clarinetist Elgaard said: "This city has given us so much, especially in the collision of cultures, it has given us the inspiration of the best family." Therefore, being able to present our best to the people of Guangzhou in outreach activities is also a kind of cultural feedback. ”
On Guangzhou's new central axis, the sound of drums is in your ears. The surging rhythm of percussion is jumping, and a new vibrant bay area comes into view. At the top of the Canton Tower, two brass players played "I Love You, China" and "Under the Lion Rock" in the clouds in the form of trumpet and horn duets, adding a touch of youthful and harmonious colors to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
The same melody is resounding at the bell tower by the waterfront in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. On January 31, the song "Under the Lion Rock" made the footsteps of hurried pedestrians passing by the bell tower stop. As one of the most important parts of the Canton-Kowloon Railway, the Tsim Sha Tsui Clock Tower has witnessed the connection between Guangzhou and Hong Kong and the people-to-people exchanges between Guangdong and Hong Kong for more than a century.
Today, more than 100 years later, the bell tower is still the same, witnessing the collective memories of the young musicians' flash mobs.
As the instructors and musicians felt, the 2024 YMCG has new breakthroughs and new sparks, and it is not only the music that will be unforgettable, but also the dialogue between China and the West, and the strong friendship between friends through music. The vibrant, open and inclusive notes from the Bay Area are riding the east wind of YMCG and flying to the world.
South+ reporter Wang Hanqi.
Author] Wang Hanqi.
*] Southern Press Media Group Nanfang + client.