Symphony puts on outdoor show in Xi'an

Xi'an Symphony Orchestra gave an outdoor concert near the iconic Big Wild Goose Pagoda, a Buddhist pagoda built in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), in Xi'an, Shaanxi province on Sept 19.

Under the baton of conductor Huang Yi, the orchestra played repertories including Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, Act III: Polonaise, The Firebird by Igor Stravinsky and Chinese composer Yin Qing's Under the Sun.

Pianist Zhang Haochen performed Sergei Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody On A Theme of Paganini along with the orchestra.

The concert was also broadcast online, which attracted over 5.6 million viewers.

Founded in 2012, the orchestra has recruited musicians from around the country, mostly those younger than 30. To bring classical music closer to the public, it has been looking at different types of performance. For example, the orchestra has held outdoor concerts at landmark sites in Xi'an, such as the Terracotta Warriors Museum and Huashan Mountain.