Full coverage: 2017 Spring Festival

The University of Birmingham’s China Institute has marked the Chinese New Year with the help of a trio of world-renowned musicians.

The University of Birmingham’s China Institute has marked the Chinese New Year with the help of a trio of world-renowned musicians. [Photo: University of Birmingham]

Pianist Di Xiao, cellist Jiaxin Lloyd Webber and harpist Eleanor Turner performed in the Elgar Concert Hall in a celebration concert that delivered a unique and exciting programme.

The artists combined piano, cello and harp to perform western and eastern repertoires, as well as their own compositions and arrangements.

They were joined by Poppy Weng playing the 3,000 year-old traditional Chinese 21 string instrument ‘Zheng’ to deliver her interpretation of Adele’s ‘Rolling in the Deep’.

Tonight's event highlighted the University’s engagement with China, which ranges from research collaborations with China’s best universities to working alongside the municipal government in Guangzhou.

Birmingham’s relationship with China dates back to the foundation of the University. In fact, the first Chinese student joined the University in 1907 and there are now over 14,000 Chinese alumni. There is also a strong musical connection with China, as the first original Chinese violin composition was Difficult Road (Xinglu Nan), composed in 1919 by Birmingham’s famous geology alumnus Li Siguang.

The University sponsored the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra’s (CBSO) recent New Year tour of China, which saw the world-famous orchestra perform five concerts in four Chinese cities - Beijing, Changsha, Guangzhou and Shanghai. 

University of Birmingham Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir David Eastwood attended the Beijing concert after hosting a special reception for some of the University’s friends and partners in China.

The University of Birmingham launched its China Institute in 2012 to gather together its wide-ranging research activities with Chinese partners and encourage inter-disciplinary research across the University that focuses on China. In addition to the Birmingham-based Institute, the University established a presence in Shanghai in 2009 and opened the Guangzhou Centre in 2011, to host its activities in China.

Professor Jon Frampton, Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor (China) and Director of the China Institute, said: “Chinese New Year offers the perfect opportunity for the University of Birmingham to reflect upon our proud and longstanding relationship with China, which spans over 100 years.

“Our celebration also gives us the chance to bring together people from the diverse communities in the University, as well as further afield in the city, which have an interest in Chinese culture and working with Chinese partners.”