He never misses this concert, and at the age of 98, legendary conductor Cao Peng has performed again! Nearly 20 years of music | opera | conductor
On the evening of July 7th, 98 year old legendary conductor Cao Peng and the Shanghai City Symphony Orchestra once again appeared at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, inviting conductor Lv Jia to assist and present the "Opera Feast" symphony concert of the 2023 Oriental Citizen Concert to fans. The concert kicked off with Bernstein's most distinctive opera "Candide" overture, featuring classic opera overtures and excerpts by composers such as Rossini, Smetana, and Verdi.
Since the age of 82 in 2007, Cao Peng has established a strong musical friendship with the public welfare music popularization brand "Oriental Citizen Concert" founded by Shanghai Oriental Art Center. He, who is passionate about music public welfare, checks in every year at the Oriental Citizen Concert, and the audience can always see the diligent and hardworking figure of this elderly artist at the concert site.
In 2014, Cao Peng celebrated his 90th birthday while performing at the Oriental Citizen Concert. At the end of the concert, the words "Shanghai Oriental Art Center congratulates Mr. Cao Peng on his 90th birthday" appeared on the LED screen of the live stage. Six autistic children played the variation "Happy Birthday" with the band, and the entire audience stood up and sang "Happy Birthday to you". The special celebration ceremony after the music event made Cao Peng's eyes red.
Since 2008, Cao Peng has been committed to using music to open the ears and hearts of children with autism. More than 200 young volunteers from the Shanghai City Symphony Orchestra formed a charity volunteer team, using instruments to serve children with autism and using music to talk to "children of the stars". From studying music to cultural courses and life skills, and then to setting up a "Love Coffee" practice base, Cao Peng has transmitted the light and heat of music to more people.
That night, the concert, consisting of two to three hundred people, had a strong lineup. Under the influence of Cao Peng, Lv Jia, the Music and Art Director of the National Grand Theatre, the Music Director and Chief Conductor of the National Grand Theatre Orchestra, specially assisted. In his early years, Lv Jia studied under another renowned conductor in China, Zheng Xiaoying, and later went to Berlin University of the Arts in Germany to further his studies, beginning a brilliant career as a conductor. In the past 20 years, Lu Jia has conducted over 2000 operas and concerts worldwide, becoming the first Chinese conductor to record a complete set of Mendelssohn's symphonic works. He is also the only conductor in the world to record a complete set of Swedish national treasure composer Ingvar Lidholm's symphonic works.
Since 2006, the Shanghai Oriental Art Center has planned four series of public welfare performances throughout the year, namely "Noble, Affordable, and Cultural". The "Oriental Citizen Concert" brand has been launched, inviting three generations of Chinese conductors to join hands with local orchestras to perform, and facilitating the unforgettable scene of Belolavik, the music director of the British BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducting the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra at the public welfare concert site. Since its establishment, the Oriental Citizen Music Concert has performed over 730 times, attracting over a million viewers. It adheres to the principle of "high quality, low ticket prices" to give back to its fans and has become one of the largest and most popular public welfare concerts in China. It has increased from one concert per month to two concerts per month, relying on the Poly cinema line to "copy" to multiple cities in the Yangtze River Delta, and has upgraded to launch evening versions of citizen music concerts. In the second half of this year, the public welfare music feast of Dongfang Citizen Concert has been increased again, adding 5 evening performances on top of the original 2 performances per month.
