Chinese New Year Gala 2017, Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
11/2/2017
“It kept its publicity promises. The Chinese New Year Gala was a dazzling cascade of folk-art, ranging from Uyghur, Tibetan, Manchu to Kazakh, Zhuang, Korean and more”, wrote Nottingham Evening Post’s Phil Lowe in a review of the gala event on 9th February (view full article ).
This year’s event was organised by the Nottingham Confucius Institute (NCI), The University of Nottingham, as part of its Chinese New Year celebrations programme. All acts were performed by the China Ethnic Song and Dance Ensemble, which is based in Beijing and is the only national-level performance group representing China’s ethnic minorities.
The event was attended by around 2,000 people: the largest Nottingham Chinese gala event to date. VIP guests included Mr Ian Curryer, CEO of Nottingham City Council, Mr Li Guoqiang, First Secretary of the Chinese Embassy in London, Professor Nick Miles, The University of Nottingham’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement and NCI directors Dr Jian Chen and Dr Jinrong Meng.
The Evening Post review described the show as “A fascinating evening of dance, music and song” expressed with passion by each performer for “their culture, their lives and their love of nature”. The ensemble’s level and breadth of talent, representing so many forms of creativity, clearly delivered a truly spellbinding evening of entertainment. Tibetan singer Awang brought warmth and wisdom from a sacred, snow-covered land with his song “Road to Heaven”; Uygur musician Yiliyaer Ayoufu, described by many as one Asia’s best percussionists, charmed all with a tambourine solo that toyed with language barriers; Piao Gengwu, a super-talented young dancer, brought his magnificent Korean drum dance to a new audience; the famous Zhuang Opera soprano Mu Linlin took the audience’s breath away with the songs 'Swallow' and 'Water Nymph - Rusalka.'; both Zhuang single string instrument player Lei Ying and horse-head fiddle player Zhang Duo blew the audience away with sounds many had never heard before; and Mongolian superstar vocalist Teng Geer, a household name in China, brought the gala to its sensational climax with three songs, “Heaven”, “Mongols” and “Flowing River”.
The show lasted two and a half hours, ringing with waves of applause throughout, the audience repeatedly presented with something new and fascinating. Many in the audience shared views that the show was incredible, and the best Chinese performance they have even seen in Nottingham. “I was totally blown away by Mu Linlin’s operatic voice. It was so beautiful and powerful: a perfect sound I can hear nowhere else – no recording comes close!. And Teng Geer’s amazing too – more life and emotion in his voice than I’ve ever heard” said one local resident.
NCI Director Dr Chen said that he was very pleased with the show and all the positive feedback from the audience. “One of NCI’s missions is to build bridges of understanding between the UK and China. Bringing the China Ethnic Song and Dance Ensemble to present this sensational show to the people of Nottingham is a perfect way to bring the two nations closer“ said Dr Chen.
NCI would also like to thank the event co-organiser the Chinese Students and Scholars Association (CSSA) Nottingham, sponsors the Asia Business Centre and Hino Travel, and all NCI staff and student volunteers for their hard work behind the scenes to make this superb event possible.
~ENDS~
Posted on Monday 13th February 2017