Songs of celebration hail anniversary

The Forbidden City Concert Hall has announced a series of programs to mark the 25th anniversary of the venue's reopening. From Friday to May 19, it will host performances of classical music, choral singing, chamber music and traditional Chinese music.

Conductor Zheng Jian, the Beijing Musicians Association Choir and the China Broadcast-Film Symphony Orchestra will present the opening concert on Friday, playing such works as Ode to the Red Flag and Swan Lake.

On April 27, Fang Jinlong will play the pipa (Chinese lute), while jamming with French jazz musicians, including pianist, organist and composer Benoit Sourisse; drummer and composer Andre Charlier; and accordion player Christophe Lampidecchia.

Chinese art songs will be performed by soprano Shi Yue and baritone Yuan Chenye, along with pianists Xu Hong and Chen Xi, on April 28. During the May Day holiday, the Beijing Symphony Orchestra will perform under the baton of conductor Tan Lihua on Wednesday.

Other highlights include a concert for children with works adapted from songs featured in classic Chinese cartoons and a shadow-puppet show by artists from Tangshan, Hebei province. The award-winning Amber Quartet, and pianist Sheng Yuan will team up for a concert to close the festival on May 19.

Located in Zhongshan Park near Tian'anmen Square, the Forbidden City Concert Hall was first built in 1942 as one of Beijing's first modern theaters. From 1942 to 1996, it undertook three major renovations and has been transformed from an open-air theater to an indoor venue, which has since staged live performances and national-level meetings.

In 1999, led by Zhang Heping, then the director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture (now the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism), the Forbidden City Concert Hall reopened following another renovation.