On May 26，2019, the TANK Shanghai Art Center held a successful music event -- "TANK Shanghai concert", and invited the Philadelphia Orchestra to put on a live performance. At this event, top musicians from the Philadelphia Orchestra, one of the world's top 10 orchestras, led the audience through a wonderful and memorable musical journey.
Four musicians performed three masterpieces from the Classical and Romantic periods: Mozart's String Quartet No. 14 in G Major, K. 387, movements I, III and IV; Borodin's Nocturne from String Quartet No. 2 in D Major; Dvorak String Quartets Opp.96 "American", movements IV, and three traditional pieces familiar to the Chinese audience: Dance of the Yao People, Guess Tune, Moon Reflected in Er Quan.As western classical music and traditional Chinese music reverberated in succession at the TANK Shanghai Art Center, a splendid fusion of classical and modern chemistry naturally emerged.
It is worth mentioning that Chinese contemporary artist Liu Wei's visual artwork “Shift” was also featured in the performance. The artwork is a set of color gradient designed based on the color spectrum, expressing both the oscillation and the integration. Kandinsky compared colors to musical notes, and he considered music and visual art to have a harmonious relationship. So far as his was concerned, visual art has the ability to represent the flow and rhythm of music; and in turn, music is capable of showing colorful visual pictures. By juxtaposing the auditory and the visual, the classical and the modern, today's concert hopes to create a wonderful contrast, new experiences, and to also explore the possibility of new integration between different art forms.
The concert was jointly organized by TANK Shanghai and the U.S. Consulate General Shanghai. Mr. Jeffrey Graham, the Deputy Consul General of the U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai, also delivered a speech during this event. He mentioned, “This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the United States. Culture arts has been a crucial part in this diplomatic relationship. The Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra was the first American Orchestra to perform in China. Their first performance in China was in 1973, a year after President Richard Nixon's visit in 1972. This afternoon is an opportunity to put aside the China-U.S. trade issue for a moment and enjoy the amazing performance of the Philadelphia Orchestra.’
“Today we are excited to come to this unique art space. I would like to pay tribute to Mr. Qiao Zhibing, the founder of the TANK Shanghai Art Center. Thank you for creating this space and allowing us to come here and meet the audience. As you know, the Philadelphia Orchestra was the first American Orchestra to perform in China in 1973, and today we are honored to be the first orchestra to perform at TANK Shanghai.’ said Mr. Matías Tarnopolsk, President and CEO of the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Meanwhile, Mr. Qiao Zhibing, founder of TANK Shanghai, said in his speech, “As a new art institution, TANK Shanghai Art Center wants the public to feel close to contemporary art. We believe that art is in music, and art is in culture... "
Viewer comments:
1.‘It was a very rare and wonderful experience to see the Philadelphia Orchestra perform at the museum. And I look forward to seeing more exciting events at the TANK! ‘
2.‘The music is beautiful and touching, lingering in the air, simply unforgettable.’
About the Philadelphia Orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the top ten symphony orchestras in the world. It was founded in 1900 and is based in Philadelphia. It is renowned for its unique "sound of Philadelphia", its compelling artistic charm, and its unparalleled pioneering spirit in the history of music art. It still stands among the world's top symphony orchestras. In 1973, as the first American symphony orchestra to visit China, the Philadelphia orchestra performed in China for the first time. Since then, the orchestra visited China in 1993, 1996, 2001, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017. Over the years, the orchestra has carried out a number of resident cooperation projects in China and played an important bridging role in cultural and educational exchanges.
