Festival marks key anniversary

Sheng player Wu, who played with the Silk Road Ensemble, a music project launched by renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma, during the festival in 2018, says: "As a musician, I am very glad to be part of this festival and during the past 15 years, the festival makes music more accessible, more entertaining, and allows all of us to share emotion and passion through music.

"If we compared the 25-year-old festival to a 25-year-old person, we would see a young adult, who is strong, independent and shoulders responsibility in society. It's very exciting."

Zhao Cong, principal pipa player of the China National Traditional Orchestra, who is also the president of the company, says: "I performed at the first Beijing Music Festival when I was a student of the Central Conservatory of Music. It was an unforgettable experience. Thanks to the festival, I saw and worked with many great musicians. It offered me, then a young student, valuable experience."

Besides the Beijing concert, the 25th anniversary celebration will also be marked with a special forum hosted by the Asia Society in New York on Wednesday.

Musicians, who have worked closely with the Beijing Music Festival over the past 25 years, will join the forum, including American composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein's daughter Jamie Bernstein, composers Zhou Long, Du Yun and Zhou Tian.

They will review the achievements of the festival, especially its contribution to cultural communication between the East and the West, as well as sharing their own stories with the festival.