49th Orchestral Season

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The 49th Orchestral Season Opening Concert
Silken Notes of the Pipa

2025 China National Arts Fund Stage Art Creation Fund Project
China Welfare Lottery and China Sports Lottery Public Welfare Funds

One of the Programmes of Chinese Culture Festival 2025 and Asia+ Festival 2025

This Silken Notes of the Pipa concert is supported by the Belt and Road Office of the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau.

Date and Time
12-13/9/2025 (Fri,Sat) 8:00pm
Venue
Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall
Ticket Fee
$450, $350, $300, $250
Conductor
Yan Huichang
Performed by
Five-string pipa : Fang Jinlong
Satsuma-biwa : Akiko Kubota
Oud : Giannis Koutis
Guqin : Wang Youdi
Four-string pipa : Zhang Ying
Guan : Qin Jitao
Duduk : Ma Wai-him
Shakuhachi : Sun Yongzhi

This concert marks the Orchestra’s second project selected by the prestigious National Arts Fund Stage Art Creation Fund Project—following Trail of the Blue Dragon—and it is also a major programme of the Chinese Culture Festival 2025 and Asia+ Festival 2025.


Inspired by the Silk Road, this concert focuses on the pipa, the foremost plucked string instrument where similar forms have been found across different regions that eloquently recount the histories and stories of their lands. 


Throughout history, plucked string instruments played in a “cradled” position have flourished across diverse cultural landscapes, giving rise to a burgeoning musical repertoire that communicates the sights and sounds of different locales. This Chinese orchestral suite is structured in seven movements, highlighting the expressive qualities and tonal characteristics of the five-stringed and four-stringed pipa of China, the satsuma-biwa and shakuhachi of Japan and the oud of Turkey respectively. Together they weave a colourful musical tapestry tracing back to the cultural heritage of the Silk Road

Programmes
Movement I – Prelude: Riding the Winds and Breaking the Waves for Chinese orchestra
   
Movement II – The Civil Category: Gems from the Book of Songs for five-string pipa & orchestra
  
Movement III – The Martial Category: The Overlord Lays Down His Armour for four-string pipa & orchestra

Movement IV – Interlude: A Gentle Breeze for guqin, guan and duduk
   
Movement V – The Heroic Spirit: Heart of the Ocean for satsuma-biwa, shakuhachi & Orchestra
 
Movement VI – A Shared Musical Overture for oud & orchestra

Movement VII – Postlude: Sailing Across Vast Seas for four-string pipa, five-string pipa, satsuma-biwa, saz & orchestra


Duration: Approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes, with an intermission of 15 minutes.