Young composers get chance to understand Chinese culture

"Cultural influence is a subtle process. It does not work by feeding others what you produce."

Communication between artists and intellectuals from different cultural backgrounds is important to inspire new works, Ye says.

As a member of an educational institution, he believes communication can be achieved between musicians all over the world.

The 2017 Hearing China concert will kick off with a concert at the Shanghai Symphony Hall on Nov 12.

Young musicians from Israel, Australia, Russia and Canada will present traditional Chinese opera, folk songs and traditional melodies, with their adaptations, arrangements and compositions based on the motif.

While Hearing China is about the international music community's understanding of Chinese music, the recent concert by C ASEAN Consonant Ensemble was different.

The ensemble has been active since 2015, and comprises musicians from the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations, each playing their traditional music instruments.

When Ye learned about the group's tour plan earlier this year, he urged them to add one more concert to their schedule - one in Shanghai, to play compositions by the students and teachers of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

The concert called Beyond Frontier: The Harmonious Spirit of China-ASEAN took place at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music on May 17, and featured 13 pieces created for the ensemble by the postgraduate students and young teachers of the conservatory.

Even though the students and scholars at the conservatory are exposed to lots of music genres, styles and forms from all over the world, they still found "some of the instruments completely new", says Ye.

After the ensemble arrived in Shanghai, the musicians worked with the composers on the music.

"It was a great opportunity to learn about the folk music of Southeast Asia," says Ye, who hopes to extend the collaboration.

Now thanks to the support from the municipality and education authorities, the city's professional orchestras, such as the Shanghai Symphony and the Shanghai Philharmonic, will present concerts featuring the works of students, says Ye.