The 20th Beijing Music Festival: Musical Legacy & Innovation

This fall, the Beijing Music Festival (BMF) commemorates its 20th anniversary. At a press conference held earlier in the month, Beijing Music Festival Arts Foundation announced the events, programs, and roster of artists for this year’s festival, highlights of the celebratory activities, and theme – “BMF at 20”. The 22-day festival, lasting from October 8 to 29, consists of 29 events, plus 12 social and educational events including masterclasses, introductory sessions, school concerts, weekend family programs, and open rehearsals. After Twenty Years of Forging a Cultural Brand, the Legend Continues Established in 1998, the BMF has blazed an extraordinary trail over the past 20 years, during which time classical music in Beijing and its citizens’ cultural life have experienced dramatic transformation. The BMF has always played an important role. Striving for continual growth and improvement, with strong support and under the leadership of its hosts – the Ministry of Culture and the Beijing Municipal Government – the BMF has established itself as a vital cultural spectacle in the capital and as a flagship event in the country’s public culture. Highlights of this year’s BMF include an opening concert with the China Philharmonic Orchestra and Frank Peter Zimmerman led by Artistic Director of the BMF Long Yu (Oct. 8), a symphonic marathon featuring nine native orchestras (Oct. 14), the complete cycle of Beethoven’s 9 symphonies with Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen under Paavo Järvi (Oct. 22 through 26), a joint production with Salzburg Easter Festival of Wagner’s opera Die Walküre with Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra under Jaap van Zweden (Oct. 24 & 27), the premiere of composer Chen Qigang’s Violin Concerto performed by Maxim Vengerov (Oct. 29), plus immersive opera, traditional Chinese performance, world music, choral performances, children’s concert, and much more. About the Beijing Music Festival Held over 4 weeks every October, BMF is the most important cultural event in China. The Festival and its Founder and Artistic Director, Maestro Long Yu, pioneer China’s unique musical voice. The festival has presented numerous historical performances such as the China premiere of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 8 (2002); the Asian premiere of Alban Berg's opera, “Lulu” (2002); Guo Wenjing's operas, “Ye Yan” (2003) and “Wolf Club Village” (2003); and the China premiere of Richard Wagner's complete Ring Cycle (2005). BMF’s co-commission with Opera Boston, “Madame White Snake,” was awarded the 2011 Pulitzer Prize. For more information, please visit: bmf.org.cn/ Media Contact: Patricia Price patricia@8vamusicconsultancy.com