Jiang Appreciates Performance by US National Orchestra
The National Symphony Orchestra of the United States, hailed by President Bill Clinton as "one of America's cultural treasures," staged its premier performance at the Great Hall of the People on the evening of January 26, and was well received by an enthusiastic audience including President Jiang Zemin.
Prior to the performance, Jiang met with the orchestra's president, Robert Jones, and musical director Leonard Slatkin, and recalled watching them play during his visit to the United States in 1997.
President Jiang said the Chinese people's appreciation of symphony music is growing due to popularization of and education in basic symphonic knowledge. He stressed the importance of the current visit by the orchestra, saying its performances will help deepen mutual understanding and friendship between the peoples of the two countries.
Founded in 1931, the National Symphony Orchestra, whose home base is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, has earned worldwide praise for its many overseas tours, as well as for its seasons at home.
The orchestra regularly participates in events of national and international importance, and often performs for presidential inaugurations, and leads the nation in its annual Independence Day and Memorial Day celebrations with nationally televised outdoor concerts on the West Lawn of the White House.
This evening, the orchestra, under the baton of Slatkin, treated the audience to Bernstein's "Overture to Candide" and "Symphonic Dances from West Side Story," Barber's "Adagio for Strings," and Berlioz's "Symphonic Fantastique," and was warmly applauded.
The orchestra's current visit coincides with the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States and President Jiang Zemin and President Bill Clinton both wrote inscriptions to commemorate this performance.
The orchestra will also tour Shanghai and Hong Kong.
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