Passing the baton: Chinese conductors seek global fame

Culture 17:13 09.07.2018
Jing Huan twirls her conductor's baton nervously in the wings while the brass and string sections of China's Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra tune their instruments.
 
Aged 36, Jing is part of a new breed of foreign-trained conductors, as China hopes to gain recognition in the field after winning global fame for its soloists, including piano and string virtuosos.
 
After long relying on Western conductors, a growing number of symphony orchestras around the country are now entrusting the baton to a fresh generation of Chinese music directors.
 
Jing studied at the University of Cincinnati and served as the conducting assistant of the symphony orchestra there before joining the Guangzhou orchestra in southern China.
 
Last year her orchestra performed on a prestigious Beijing stage as part of a "musical marathon" that saw nine ensembles play one after another to mark the 20th anniversary of the Beijing Music Festival.
 
"In China, in the Central Conservatory of Music, we focus on technique," she told AFP. "So technically, we are very strong... but as a young conductor you don't have many chances to conduct a real orchestra immediately in China, while in America, it's easy to get a lot of experience early on," she said.
 
According to prominent music critic Xu Yao, there are now some 80 symphony orchestras in China -- backed by local governments who see Western music as a matter of prestige -- compared to about 30 just eight years ago.
 
"But the shortage of conductors remains: most orchestras are led by Chinese, but one conductor can sometimes be in charge of three orchestras!" said Xu, pointing to the lack of "small musical groups" that would allow young conductors to gain experience, as is the case in the West.
 
- 'Chinese-style Beethoven' -
 
China has come a long way however, said Long Yu, 54, artistic director of the Shanghai and Guangzhou symphony orchestras, and founder of the Beijing Music Festival.
 
"I grew up in Shanghai in the midst of the Cultural Revolution," a period of political turmoil from 1966-1976 during which Western music was banned, the maestro told AFP.
 
Long secretly learned the piano from his grandfather, a renowned composer, and in the 1980s became one of the first Chinese musicians to study abroad as the Communist government started to open up to the rest of the world.
 
He trained in Berlin before returning to China in the early 1990s, where conducting remained difficult.
 
"It is a very special job. You have to deliver a message on the interpretation of the music to the musicians themselves, so it's quite difficult," he said.
 
Long bristles when he hears about a "Chinese style" of playing classical music.
 
"There is no such thing as a Chinese-style Beethoven!", he said.
 
Conducting in China still carries its special challenges -- and rewards, said violinist Jian Wang, who also trained in the United States.
 
"It's very interesting and challenging at the same time to play in China (because) part of the audience is hearing the pieces for the first time," she said.
 
In addition, most musicians in Chinese orchestras were trained as soloists.
 
Ten years ago, French conductor Emmanuel Calef came up against the problem when he took the podium with the Guiyang Symphony Orchestra, a private venture in the remote southwestern province of Guizhou.
 
Musicians in their 20s "were technically ready, but not culturally ready, and they had not been trained to participate in a collective endeavour", he told AFP.
 
He also remembers the "cultural shock" he felt when he found that neon signs would light up to indicate to the audience when to applaud.
 
And while rich businessmen who financed the orchestra were ready to rent a prestigious Steinway piano or a precious Amati violin, they were reluctant to buy quality scores, the French conductor said with a smile.
 
- 'It takes time' -
 
Ten years on, classical music is no longer seen in China as an "import product", although the repertoire is often confined to the "very big" composers such as Beethoven, Bach and Brahms, said Calef.
 
For more modern composers, "some (Chinese) musicians have similar reactions that their Western counterparts had when discovering the scores in the late 19th or early 20th centuries," he said.
 
Long agreed, but said the repertoire is growing gradually as the public becomes more familiar with it. "It is a culture that is still foreign today, and there is still a lot of work to be done."
 
For him, the real difficulty is that few Chinese conductors have won plaudits abroad.
 
Notable exceptions include Chinese pioneer Tang Muhai, who conducted the Berlin Philharmonic during the 1983-1984 season, then continued a successful career in the US, Portugal, Australia and Finland.
 
There are other examples like China's Zhang Xian, who in 2009 became the first female musical director of a symphony orchestra in Italy, in Milan.
 
"There are incredible talents among conductors from China, Japan, Korea and Singapore, but I don't think Asian conductors are totally accepted yet in the West. It takes time," sighed Long.
Azerbaijan takes measures to turn Khankandi into safe city - VİDEO

News line

Azerbaijan weather forecast for March 30
Azerbaijan weather forecast for March 30
15:00 29.03.2024
Tajikistan detains 9 people over Russian concert shooting
Tajikistan detains 9 people over Russian concert shooting
14:46 29.03.2024
Washington Is Forming A New Alliance - OPINION
14:32 29.03.2024
Individuals identified as drug users will not be admitted for service in Azerbaijani tax authorities
14:14 29.03.2024
Philippines' Catholic devotees nailed to crosses to re-enact crucifixion
Philippines' Catholic devotees nailed to crosses to re-enact crucifixion
14:00 29.03.2024
Umud Mirzayev: EU's South Caucasus Visit Aims to Maintain Regional Influence
13:45 29.03.2024
Public Television of Armenia Reveals Villages to be Returned to Azerbaijan
13:39 29.03.2024
Death toll of Israeli strike in Syria rises to 42, war monitor says - UPDATED
13:25 29.03.2024
Azerbaijan toughens penalties for non-compliance with rules of state of emergency regime
Azerbaijan toughens penalties for non-compliance with rules of state of emergency regime
13:12 29.03.2024
How will the EU's visit to the South Caucasus affect the peace process? - Former ambassador talks to Ednews
13:00 29.03.2024
Azerbaijan tightens sanctions for breaching special operation zone rules on religious extremism
12:45 29.03.2024
Azerbaijan toughens penalties for non-compliance with rules of social emergency environment regime
12:33 29.03.2024
About $7 bln of foreign direct investment was invested in Azerbaijan last year
12:00 29.03.2024
Number of people injured in Crocus City Hall terrorist attack reaches 382
11:48 29.03.2024
Media: Netanyahu rejected the Mossad Chief's proposal for a possible agreement in Gaza
11:37 29.03.2024
Azerbaijani Parliament's meeting kicks off
11:26 29.03.2024
An American couple founded a website, which identifies brands that support Israel
An American couple founded a website, which identifies brands that support Israel
11:07 29.03.2024
US scientists name infection more dangerous for brain than coronavirus
US scientists name infection more dangerous for brain than coronavirus
11:00 29.03.2024
Parviz Shahbazov: Foundations of 4 new renewable energy plants will be laid this year
Parviz Shahbazov: Foundations of 4 new renewable energy plants will be laid this year
10:50 29.03.2024
Japan eyes self-driving expressway lane network
10:40 29.03.2024
Oil prices end 1Q24 with strong growth
10:30 29.03.2024
SECRETS of the European Union's visit to the South Caucasus - Fikret Sadigov EXPLAINS
10:25 29.03.2024
Ammunition found in Khankandi
Ammunition found in Khankandi
10:10 29.03.2024
Iran’s top diplomat: Military presence of third countries in Caspian Sea goes against interests of region
Iran’s top diplomat: Military presence of third countries in Caspian Sea goes against interests of region
10:00 29.03.2024
Armenia officially announces freezing its participation in CSTO
09:50 29.03.2024
US hopes to return to purchase of 72 fighter jets per year amid budget cuts
09:38 29.03.2024
Another 138 IDPs leave for Fuzuli
09:28 29.03.2024
Netanyahu: "We have strategic assets of Hamas"
09:17 29.03.2024
Date of next meeting of Armenian and Azerbaijani Parliament Speakers announced
09:00 29.03.2024
Russia prepares for new offensive in May-June l – says Zelensky
23:52 28.03.2024
Russian investigators have evidence of Ukraine link to Crocus terrorists
22:24 28.03.2024
Committee members of the EU Council will visit the South Caucasus region
19:48 28.03.2024
Bayern to pay Thomas Tuchel 12M euro compensation
Bayern to pay Thomas Tuchel 12M euro compensation
19:00 28.03.2024
Crocus City Hall terrorists took drugs before attack - law enforcement agencies
Crocus City Hall terrorists took drugs before attack - law enforcement agencies
18:33 28.03.2024
Azerbaijan, UN Development Program mull future co-op
18:00 28.03.2024
An Independent Trade Union Established within International Eurasia Press Fund - First in NGO sector - PHOTOS
17:39 28.03.2024
Italian PM condemns Macron for idea of sending troops to Ukraine
Italian PM condemns Macron for idea of sending troops to Ukraine
17:23 28.03.2024
Azerbaijan lends clarity to color requirement for taxis
17:02 28.03.2024
Isaac Herzog: Israel has no greater friend than US, and US has no greater friend than Israel
Isaac Herzog: Israel has no greater friend than US, and US has no greater friend than Israel
16:45 28.03.2024
Nigerian army eliminates over 200 militants in 2 weeks
16:30 28.03.2024
Hamısı