There's a stereotype that classical music is best and contemporary music is complicated, weird and hard to listen to. That's what they said about Beethoven.

Contemporary music worldwide is generally underappreciated and the Shanghai Conservatory of Music will launch a series of concerts and lectures starting tomorrow to promote the sounds of today.

"No Today, No Future" is the title of the five-day program that includes nine concerts of international and Chinese contemporary works. It features some avant-garde and experimental pieces.

Everyone is welcome to the music week.

"Contemporary music is the development from classical music. But compared with classical music, contemporary music is facing an awkward time - it is composed, performed and appreciated by only a small group of people," says Yang Yandi, vice president of Shanghai Conservatory of Music. "Now we are trying to bring contemporary music closer to local musicians and music lovers."

Seven of the nine concerts will be free to encourage attendance.

"Many people have the stereotype that classical music is the best while contemporary music is weird and hard to listen to," says composer Wang Shu from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

He will debut his composition "Yue," for guzheng (Chinese zither), piano and percussion at 1:30pm on Saturday.

"There are many excellent, inspiring and enjoyable contemporary pieces out there but people just don't get to know it," says Wang.

He says it's "wrong" to stick to music written at least 50 years ago. "If we don't support contemporary music, we will have no music to represent our times in the future."

Wang points out that the music of Bach was contemporary music of his time and it hadn't been played for many years after his death until the real value was discovered.