Paris celebrates Chinese folk music with week-long event

A series of Chinese folk events have been held in Paris, showcasing traditional instrumental music alongside an art exhibition.

The "Chanson of Silk and Bamboo—Wuxi Week of Chinese Folk Music" event, held at the China Cultural Center in Paris, featured the traditional folk music of the city of Wuxi in East China's Jiangsu province.

The Wuxi Chinese Orchestra launched the series with a performance of "The Beautiful Taihu Lake" on May 21. The week of events was co-organized by the China Cultural Center in Paris, with China's Network of International Culturalink Entities and the Wuxi municipal government.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Li Qiufeng, director of Wuxi's publicity department, described Wuxi as "the hometown of Chinese folk music".

As the birthplace of Wu culture, Wuxi has a strong musical tradition. Notable masters like Liu Tianhua, a pioneer of modern Chinese folk music, and the famous piece The Moon Reflected on Second Spring exemplify the richness of Wuxi's musical heritage.

Also speaking at the opening ceremony, Kimmo Mattila, secretary-general of the International Confederation of Accordionists, said that the accordion instrument holds a unique position in the musical culture of Wuxi and within the traditional music of the Jiangnan region, which refers to the vast area south of the Yangtze River.

Mattila, a native of Finland, highlighted Wuxi's beautiful natural scenery and deep cultural heritage. Remy Aron, president of the French Association of Plastic Arts, recalled his experiences collaborating with Chinese artists in Wuxi, creating and exhibiting works together, and praised Wuxi's innovative use of oil painting as a medium for urban promotion.