European musicians travel to SW China's Guizhou for cultural heritage encounter

The "My Music Paradise--China Europe Young Musicians Art Exchange Global Communication Initiative" was recently launched in London, the UK.

Jointly initiated by People's Daily Online UK, People's Daily Online Guizhou, the Publicity Department of the CPC Guizhou Provincial Committee, and Guizhou Cultural & Performing Arts Industry Group Co., Ltd., the program encourages musicians from Europe and southwest China's Guizhou to blend traditional Chinese ethnic instruments with Western classical music. Together, they will reinterpret classics and create innovative cross-cultural musical works. These creations will be shared globally through new media formats like short videos that resonate with Generation Z, telling Guizhou's stories and amplifying China's voice to the world.

Six young musicians from Europe are currently visiting Guizhou, immersing themselves in minority regions for musical field research. During the visit, they will explore how to express traditional music in a modern context, working closely with local inheritors of intangible cultural heritage.

Wang Beibei, a soprano based in the UK and the group's lead mentor, expressed that this trip to Guizhou offers a unique experience for each musician living in the West. "The mountain songs, Grand Songs of the Dong ethnic group, and even the casual tunes hummed by children in the villages exemplify music in its purest and most powerful form," she said.

On July 17, the six European musicians will present a special concert in collaboration with the Guizhou Cultural & Performing Arts Industry Group Co., Ltd., showcasing the fruits of their journey and the beauty of cultural fusion.

In late September, 20 musicians from Guizhou will travel to London to reunite with the European artists who joined the Guizhou tour. Together, they will craft innovative arrangements that fuse ethnic musical elements with modern composition, creating works that span from the raw beauty of Guizhou's original folk songs to the refined language of Western symphonic music. This dynamic, two-way exchange between young artists from China and Europe will carry the sounds of Guizhou from its mountainous heart to audiences around the world.