Let the World Hear China, Yu Long: Hear the World in Shanghai, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra's New Season Begins

On the evening of September 10th, music director Yu Long waved his baton at the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra to kick off the 2023-24 music season. This is a new music season where overseas celebrities are fully returning and youth power is flourishing. The opening concert began with the performance of young Chinese composer Zhou Tian's "Metropolis". The band leader, young violinist Liu Ming, and young pianist Zuo Zhang took the stage one after another, and together with the orchestra, they played Bernstein's "West End Story" suite and Rachmaninov's "Third Piano Concerto".

Liu Ming, the chief of the Shanghai Jiao Tong Band, serves as the soloist

The music season is an important indicator of the professionalism and internationalization level of a symphony orchestra. Every year, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra releases a season that leaves fans eagerly anticipating. In July of this year, on the day of the pre-sale tickets for the new music season, multiple performances were announced to be sold out. Fans on Xiaohongshu spontaneously planned key strategies for the new music season. The return of artists in the delegation, such as Gothier Kapson, Aishenbach, Dituwa, Augustine Dume, Medijan, Pierre Laurent Aimar, Stephen Hoff, Deng Taishan, Berlin Philharmonic Baroque Soloist, and other famous overseas artists, made a music critic sigh: "It is not only a big move that has come out continuously, but also a direct and holistic return to the past internationalization."

In November this year, the cantata "Shanghai! Shanghai!" jointly commissioned by Yu Long, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, and New York Philharmonic Orchestra will premiere globally in Shanghai. For the past three years, Yu Long has held overseas conference calls with the main creative team almost every week. He once told composer Aaron Zigman that he hoped he could use music to write about the most precious heritage of human civilization. "The only ship in this world that won't sink is the kindness of human nature."

Shanghai Symphony Orchestra New Season Opening Concert

In order to expand the global influence of "Shanghai! Shanghai!" and initiate the commission as soon as possible, Yu Longhe and Shanghai Jiao Tong closely connected with overseas "circle of friends". After its premiere in Shanghai this year, Yu Long will also direct the New York Philharmonic Orchestra to perform in New York in February next year. From 2024 to 2025, world-renowned orchestras and music festivals such as the Beijing International Music Festival, the German Berlin Symphony Orchestra, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of the United Kingdom will relay this masterpiece. As the third DG album of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, "Shanghai! Shanghai!" will also be released globally next year.

In addition to the gathering of famous artists, the new music season also continues to stage Chinese young musicians, and the opening concert is a microcosm. Liu Ming, the head of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra at the age of 28 this year, served as a soloist and collaborated with the orchestra to adapt the Bernstein suite "The West Side Story" by William David Brown. Liu Ming has appeared in multiple versions of "The West Side Story", and compared to the band version and chamber music version, she believes that this is the most innovative version. "It contains a large number of flashy techniques, and the connections and dialogues between the various parts of the work are also very clever, such as the duet on the violin and cello, which is like a dialogue between the male and female protagonists."

Young pianist Zuo Zhang performs "La San"

At the concert, the young pianist Zuo Zhang and the band played Rachmaninov's Third Piano Concerto. "La San" is known as the "world's most difficult piano concerto", and composers attempt to make the piano compete with the strength of the entire orchestra on their own, almost approaching the limit of piano performance power. Someone joked, "Playing this piece is equivalent to shoveling ten tons of coal.".

"The music industry needs to be passed down from generation to generation, providing opportunities, platforms, and space for young people." Yu Long encourages young musicians to not be inflated or ambitious, but to perform well in every performance with a calm heart. "Nowadays, many people pursue overnight fame and immediate results, but in fact, we should slow down our pace."

Yu Long, Music Director of Shanghai Symphony Orchestra

In addition, this year marks the 40th anniversary of the birth of the "Shanghai Chamber Music" brand. The music season will release the "Shanghai Chamber Music" series of records, which will organize and review live recordings of Shanghai Chamber Music from 2014 to 2024, as well as a selection of chamber music performances by visiting artists invited over the past decade. Over 700 minutes of recording and dozens of records will outline a ten-year development plan for chamber music.

Next year marks the 145th anniversary of the establishment of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Shanghai Symphony Hall. Yu Long said, "I hope Shanghai Jiao Tong can become a window, allowing people to hear the world in Shanghai and also let the world hear China. At the same time, I also hope to do a practical and basic job, make rich cultural life a daily life, and let ordinary citizens truly receive the nourishment of life in art."