Suzhou Symphony Orchestra ushers in its sixth birthday, upholding integrity and innovation, playing the Jiangnan Huazhang of classical music_Suzhou Culture_Suzhou News

□Su Daily reporter Luo Wen, Su Daily correspondent Jiang Wenlong

Founded in 2016, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra is composed of more than 70 outstanding musicians with an average age of 34 from 18 countries and regions, and more than 75% of them have a master’s degree or above. Today, this vigorous professional orchestra celebrates its sixth birthday.

It took 8 months to complete the establishment of the troupe, and started an international tour half a year later. It took less than a year and a half to be on the stage of the National Grand Theater. Resonating with the Chinese Lunar New Year Concert… A series of innovations and achievements have made SJTU famous in the industry, and it has also become a new business card of Suzhou city and Jiangnan culture.

Exquisite fusion, let Jiangnan culture shine on the international stage

At the beginning of 2019, at the invitation of the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, which was established less than two and a half years ago, performed at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. This was the first time that the United Nations held a concert in the Spring Festival. The then Chinese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United Nations Ma Zhaoxu commented: “Although the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra is young, it can be said to be a window of Suzhou’s reform and opening up. It is a small United Nations composed of musicians from nearly 20 countries and regions. The wonderful performance includes Chinese classics and Western classical music, which fully reflects the tolerance and confidence of Chinese culture.”

“On the day of the performance, ambassadors from more than 80 countries came from afar and spoke highly of our performance. On the performance site, the Chinese characters of ‘Nihao Suzhou’ can be seen everywhere.” After three years, Chen Guangxian, the director of the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, still praised our performance. This show was very impressive.

France, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, the United States, Austria… Although it has not been established for a long time, through going out again and again, SJTU continues to use music to show the world the internationality and inclusiveness of Chinese culture and the infinite charm of Suzhou city .

Chen Guangxian has been thinking about how to position this band. It wasn’t until 2018 that Sujiao performed its first Asian tour at Suntory Hall in Tokyo. He listened to the orchestra playing Debussy’s “Ocean” under the baton of chief conductor Xu Zhong, and suddenly realized that Sujiao’s own small three-pipe It is hard to have an advantage in compiling and interpreting large-scale works, but it can develop in the direction of “small and exquisite” and bring the beauty from Suzhou to the world. “Sujiao should follow a ‘delicate’ performance route, just like the city of Suzhou Same.”

In addition to continuous tour performances, SJTU has planned and held eye-catching international events since its inception. In 2018, the Suzhou Jinji Lake Composition Competition was held for the first time and received hundreds of works from 39 countries and regions on six continents. Opened a new chapter in the integration of Chinese and Western music culture. Last year, the 2nd Jinji Lake Composition Competition and the 2nd Jinji Lake Piano Competition continued to explore the “fusion of ancient and modern” and “beauty together” between symphony and exquisite Jiangnan culture. Chen Guangxian believes that the Jinji Lake Composition Competition allows composers around the world to create around “Jiangnan culture”, which can not only better reflect the cultural landscape of the Jiangnan area, but also allow the symphony to absorb the unique rhythm, melody, tune, etc. of Jiangnan culture. While enhancing global composers’ understanding of Jiangnan culture, they have the opportunity to take these excellent works of “combination of Chinese and Western” to the world tour. “Next, we can also compose other music with Chinese characteristics from the Jiangnan perspective and Jiangnan tone, tell the story of the city, and promote the melody of the times.”

Keeping upright and innovating, creating a “Suzhou model” for the development of art troupes

When symphony meets Kunqu opera, what kind of “spark” will it collide with? On July 9, 2022, the “Peony Pavilion” Kunqu Opera and Harp Quintet Concert will be staged at Suzhou Jinji Lake Concert Hall. More than 600 years of Kunqu Opera, more than 400 years of “Peony Pavilion”, and more than 200 years of symphony, the exquisite timelessness of chamber music complements the elegance and beauty of Kunqu Opera. The unique form of harp quintet complements the contemporary charm of “Peony Pavilion”, just like the Soviet style Double-sided embroidery, Western art on one side, intangible cultural heritage on the other side, has a special interest.

This is the first collaboration between the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, known as one of the “New Three Golden Flowers” in Suzhou’s literary and art circles, and the Suzhou Kunqu Opera Theater, one of the “Three Golden Flowers”. It is also the first time that a domestic orchestra combines Kunqu opera with harp and string quartet , to explore the “resonance” of traditional Chinese opera and Western chamber music. “If our Chinese symphony wants to have a place in the forest of world symphonies, it must have Chinese characteristics. Kunqu Opera is a world cultural heritage. We hope that by combining with these operas and music, we can put Suzhou elements into the symphony.” Chen Guangxian When introducing the creative source of this cross-border performance, he said.

Growing up in Suzhou, an international city, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra has the genes of integrity, innovation, diversity and tolerance flowing in its blood. Since its establishment, the Orchestra has been actively exploring the innovative expression of the integration of symphonic art and various art forms. In January this year, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra and the Central National Orchestra made a stunning appearance at the opening ceremony of the “Meet in Beijing” Olympic Cultural Festival and the 22nd “Meet in Beijing” International Art Festival – “See you in Beijing” large-scale cultural evening, featuring “colorful Jiangnan flavor” Children” added luster to the Beijing Winter Olympics; in November last year, under the baton of the music director of the orchestra, Chen Xieyang, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra performed live performances for the Suzhou Ballet’s “Love in Dolls”, bringing the audience “listening to ballet” and “watching symphony”. “; last November, “Tan Dun and Suzhou Symphony Orchestra “Nv Shu” & “Picture Exhibition” Concert” used multimedia technology to combine “Nv Shu” symphonic poems with thirteen “Nv Shu” micro-movies , Mussorgsky’s music and Kandinsky’s paintings are presented simultaneously…

Chen Guangxian introduced that in the face of the epidemic, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra chose to take the initiative, constantly embrace new technologies, innovate the form of performances, take the lead in piloting “5G+4K” and “5G+8K” live concerts in China, and move the performances online. Since 2020, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra has tried to plan a series of high-quality “5G+4K+VR” online concerts, which have received enthusiastic response; in June last year, the large-scale original symphony chorus concert “Shajiabang Century Waves” was held in Suzhou The premiere at the Culture and Art Center, audiences can watch simultaneously in 8K ultra-high-definition theaters and 8K large screens set up in many places in Suzhou, setting a precedent in China.

In terms of management model, JSTI also actively explores and innovates bravely. Chen Guangxian gave an example. In foreign orchestras, the instruments are owned by the musicians themselves, but in China they are all owned by the orchestra. This system results in very high management costs. After the establishment of Jiangsu Jiaotong University, the method of “musicians use their own instruments and the orchestra provides subsidies” can not only encourage musicians to cherish their instruments, but also reduce maintenance and management costs, which has become a new bright spot in the reform of domestic orchestras. In 2018, the research team of the Propaganda Department of the CPC Central Committee conducted a special survey on deepening the reform of the cultural system and promoting the innovation and development of art troupes. The “Suzhou Model” of troupe reform represented by the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra has become a model for the reform and study of troupes across the country.

Qu Gao can also “harmonize with the public”, classical music builds a new bridge for urban humanistic care

The Jinji Lake Concert Hall, located on the second floor of the Suzhou Culture and Art Center, is the residence of the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra. The acoustic design of the concert hall is carried out by the master of acoustic design Yasuhisa Toyoda, which fully integrates Suzhou elements, combining the flowing beauty of Suzhou garden cloud walls and stone paths with the light and agile flowing elegance of Suzhou silk. Today, it has become an important cultural landmark in Suzhou. Every year, various activities such as Suzhou Jiaotong Music Festival performances and art education are staged in turn, attracting more and more music fans to “check in”.

Chen Guangxian told reporters that the epidemic has made SJTU think: As a professional classical orchestra, what value can it bring to the music market in Suzhou and even the whole country? He shared an unforgettable event, “When the epidemic broke out in Suzhou at the beginning of this year, a friend of mine, the composer and composer of the soundtrack of “Avatar”, wrote a piece of music for Suzhou to express the As a member of the community of destiny, I hope that the Suzhou epidemic will be brought under control as soon as possible. I think this is also using music as a link to build an emotional bridge and humanistic care.”

It is precisely based on this concept that SJTU set up an art education department at the beginning of its establishment, and has formed a mature music popularization system today. Out of the concert hall, SJTU experts went down to schools and communities, offering lectures for publicity; entering the concert hall, there were guided tours before each concert, a series of lectures on “Big Guys Talking about Classics”, and the art popularization of “Big Hands Holding Small Hands” Weekly… the popularization of music covering audiences of all ages and industries has accumulatively benefited millions of people, allowing citizens of the entire city to have the opportunity to immerse themselves in beautiful melodies.

At the end of October, the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra’s art education work ushered in a very memorable moment—more than 100 members of the Suzhou Youth Symphony Orchestra successfully completed the first rehearsal. This is Suzhou’s first youth symphony orchestra established and operated by a professional orchestra. It was jointly established by the Suzhou Education Bureau and the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra. It aims to actively popularize elegant arts and strengthen the quality education of Suzhou youth. The director, Master Chen Xieyang, serves as the music director, the chief conductor of the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, Master Xu Zhong, serves as the chief conductor, and the outstanding musicians of the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra serve as the instructors. They coordinate resources from the government, enterprises, and all walks of life, and actively cultivate young instrumentalists in Suzhou. Outstanding musicians from Jiangsu Jiaotong University from all over the world will pass on high-quality music resources to the children of Jiangsu Jiaotong University. As art inheritors, they will also carry on the artistic genes and musical literacy of the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra to Su Qingjiao.

At the end of this year, this group of “Youth Tuanzi” full of youthful vitality is expected to appear at the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra New Year’s Concert, performing on the same stage with musicians of the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, and completing their stage debut.