China Huaxia National Orchestra, playing traditional Chinese music under the China Conservatory of Music (CCM), will perform in Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Luxembourg, Germany and Egypt from January 30.

"The tour to Italy, Luxembourg and Germany by a traditional Chinese music troupe is a ground-breaking event," said Zhang Weiliang, director of the Huaxia orchestra at Saturday's press conference.

In 1998, traditional Chinese music was first performed in the Golden Concert Hall of Vienna to audience acclaim. This was the first occasion for European audiences to savor live traditional Chinese music.

Zhang, a tutor in the CCM musical instrument department, said the tour performances would include: the percussion instrument concerto The Sun, two gu qin solos Lang Tao Sha and Dragon Dance, an erhu solo Beijing Dream, Chinese New Year Eve From the Northwestern Suite, the flute solo Flower Tears, and an instrumental ensemble Female General Mu Guiying.

Zhang said the pieces are all the work of modern Chinese composers such as Tan Dun, Chen Qigang and Guo Wenjing.

Guan Naizhong, a guest professor with the CCM, will conduct the tour performances.

CCM President Jin Tielin said traditional Chinese music -- a quintessential component of Chinese culture -- dates back to over 8,000 years. Having received government support since the 1950s, it rapidly regained public popularity.

"It's time to introduce traditional Chinese music to the international stage as China opens its door wider to the world," said Jin, adding that the CCM should shoulder more responsibility in preserving this unique heritage.

"Traditional Chinese music has shown that it can win the hearts of Western audiences," said Wu Zezhou, president of a performing arts agency that has sponsored all traditional Chinese music performances in the Golden Concert Hall of Vienna over the past decade.

He revealed that performances of traditional Chinese music will be held in 22 cities across 12 European and African countries from February 11 to March 2.

Gabriele Feigl, cultural attaché to the Austrian Embassy to China, said traditional Chinese music concerts held each year in the Golden Concert Hall of Vienna have become very popular among Austrians.

"I am sure that traditional Chinese music will develop a bigger and bigger audience worldwide," she said.
 
(Xinhua News Agency January 9, 2007)