Debra Li

THE newly opened Shenzhen Concert Hall will host a free concert or lecture every Sunday starting this week for the next 12 weeks, to draw more residents to classical music.

“The public welfare events, lasting three months, will consist of four parts — pipe organ concerts, symphonies, chamber music and lectures,” said Xu Xia, vice general manager of the concert hall.

Lin Daye, a young conductor with the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra (SSO), said the free Sunday concerts mark Shenzhen’s intention to become an international city.

“I’ve just returned from Berlin after graduation earlier this year, where they boast five world top symphony orchestras and three renowned opera houses. Their audiences are well educated in classical music and regularly attend concerts, thanks to their long tradition of listening to symphonies and other forms of music. Even though, they offer free concerts on one or two occasions each year to attract potential audiences,” he said.

Western classical music, which originated in western Europe, was only for the ears of the royals and the nobility in the past. The new rich who moved up the social ladder came to embrace classical music after revolutions toppled or reduced the power of the nobility in the West. However listening to symphonies has a comparatively short history in China.

“Symphonies, unlike most paintings, are abstract and more difficult to appreciate. However, people believe it can purify their souls, enrich their imagination, and train their ability of logical thinking,” Lin said.

Lin, who started out as a pianist and later studied conducting at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and Berlin Conservatory of Music, said music could comfort and inspire people.

“In Berlin, they live a comparatively simple life. Attending a concert on weekends is a good recreation for them. It’s a time to meet relatives and friends as well, when men and women will dress up for the occasion,” he added.

Lin said the free concerts constituted a “wise investment.”

“I will conduct three of the concerts by SSO, offering a program of 15 to 20 classical music pieces familiar to the general public. We will play Bizet’s ‘Carmen’ suite, Tschaikovsky’s ‘Swan Lake,’ and the ‘Hungarian Dances’ by Brahms, to name a few,” he added.

He will also give a brief introduction to each piece — the composer, time of creation, major themes, and other background information — to help the audience better understand the music.

“Everyone in the team is offering a free service. It’s our duty to give public-benefit concerts like this, yet in the long term, I think it’s a good investment,” he said.

Lin hopes more people — especially the young who are presently unable to afford concert tickets but will become a big potential market some day — will fall in love with Western classical music and attend concerts regularly.

“We will have our own world top symphony orchestras only after we have a big number of regular concert-goers. Musicians and audiences grow together, and it’s necessary to offer free education to foster the market,” he said.

Zhao Xiaoling, a former pipe organ teacher with the Chinese University of Hong Kong who is now undertaking a doctoral program at the University of Alberta in Canada, has been invited to perform.

The pipe organ, called the king of musical instruments, is known for its huge size, wide range of sound, and grandiose sound effects. Costing around 10 million yuan (US$1.32m) to make, the pipe organ at the local concert hall is one of three giant pipe organs on the mainland, the other two being in Shanghai and Guangzhou. The instrument is often used to play religious music.

“A unique instrument, the pipe organ can even be compared to a symphony orchestra judging from the music effects it can achieve,” Zhao said. “Shenzhen residents are lucky to have the chance to live the charms of a pipe organ.”

Classical music reviewer Wang Yong, who holds a doctorate in music, will give free lectures.

He will introduce music pieces to the audiences, explain the stories behind them, and provide a general overview of the development of Western music.

Those interested can go to the ticket counter at the concert hall between 1 and 3 p.m. on Sundays to pick up free tickets. Each person will get only one free ticket. Children under 1.2 meters will not be allowed to enter.

Also, free pop music concerts will be held outside the concert hall every Saturday afternoon from November.