The Chengdu Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1969. Since acquiring a permanent concert hall in 2021 it has become one of the leading professional orchestras in Sichuan province, dedicated to the development of classical music in south-western China.
The orchestra’s music director, Lin Chen, is considered one of the most promising Chinese directors of her generation. She combines her job teaching conducting at the Central Conservatoire of Music in Beijing with regular performances with opera and symphony orchestras around the world.
The violin soloist will be Feng Ning, who began his musical career in his native Chengdu before continuing his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London and the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin. He is the winner of numerous music prizes including first prize at the Paganini Competition.
Zhao Jiping, currently the honorary chairman of the Chinese Musicians’ Association, is best known for his film scores, although his compositional oeuvre actually covers a wide variety of musical genres and forms. He describes his Violin Concerto No. 1 as an attempt to set the spirit of friendship and love to music. The concerto was composed over the course of more than a decade.The violin soloist at the premiere was none other than Ning Feng, who also inspired the composer to complete the work.
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov found inspiration for his symphonic suite Scheherazade in the collection of folk tales known as One Thousand and One Nights. Combining colourful orchestration with an oriental flavour and lively rhythms, he created one of the most popular symphonic works of the nineteenth century.
