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US-CHINA MUSIC INSTITUTE

Photo by Karl Rabe
US-China Music
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    • China Now Music Festival
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China Now Music Festival
Presented in collaboration with the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, the China Now Music Festival is dedicated to promoting an understanding and appreciation of classical music from contemporary China through an annual series of concerts and lectures. Each year’s festival explores a singular theme.
纽约中国当代音乐节与北京中央音乐学院合作举办,旨在通过年度系列音乐会和讲座,促进当代中国古典音乐的理解和欣赏。每年的音乐节都有一个独特的主题。

Bridging Cultures and Genres

“Politics often divides people, but in art and music you always find connections. With the China Now Music Festival as our looking glass, we hope to bring people and cultures from East and West together through music.” —Jindong Cai, Director, US-China Music Institute

China Now Music Festival 2021

October 12 - October 17

Fisher Center, Bard College
Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York City

  • ASIAN AMERICAN VOICES
    Now in its fourth season, the China Now Music Festival is a leading force in introducing music from contemporary China to the United States and in promoting musical exchanges between the US and China. This year, as we continue to pursue our vital mission, we are broadening our scope to include the voices of a wide array of Asian American composers, with the aim of exploring their importance in contemporary American music and society.

    This year's festival arrives in the midst of a particularly challenging time, shadowed by the global pandemic and recent rise in anti-Asian discrimination and violence. Our repertoire thus reflects how Asian American composers have responded to this particular moment, as well as to the historical reception of Asians in America.

    Featuring composer-in-residence Huang Ruo, and ensemble-in-residence the Del Sol Quartet, along with many more composers and musicians, the 2021 China Now Music Festival connects culture, history, contemporary society, and the arts through a vibrant series of musical programs and discussion.

    EVENT SCHEDULE, TICKETS, AND MORE INFORMATION HERE

China Now Music Festival 2020

December 11 - December 18

Live • Online • Worldwide

  • China and Beethoven
    The year 2020 marks the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth. Celebratory events have been planned all around the world, and nowhere more so than in China, where classical music enjoys a huge following among audiences of all ages. When theaters, concert halls, and orchestras found themselves unexpectedly shuttered for much of the year, many celebrations were put on hold or re-imagined. As China begins to reopen, Beethoven once again takes center stage. 

    The third annual China Now Music Festival will provide a window into celebrations happening in China today, as well as exploring Beethoven’s enduring legacy during the changing politics of the 20th century and China’s oscillating affiliation with Western classical music.

    All events are online and free with registration. Registration and full event details will be available in mid-November. View the festival website for more information.

    More Information

China Now Music Festival 2019

September 28 – October 6

Performances at Bard College, Carnegie Hall, and Stanford University

  • China and America—Unity in Music
    The second annual China Now Music Festival celebrated milestones in the history of U.S.-China relations through music. Highlights included the world premiere of a symphonic oratorio by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Zhou Long honoring Chinese workers on the 150th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, and a multimedia musical portrait of renowned diplomat Wellington Koo.

    More about the Festival
Men of Iron and the Golden Spike

Men of Iron and the Golden Spike

This year’s festival featured the world premiere of Men of Iron and the Golden Spike, a symphonic oratorio by composer Zhou Long and lyricist Su Wei that was commissioned by the US-China Music Institute and the Center for East Asian Studies and Chinese Railroad Workers’ Project at Stanford University. Jindong Cai talks about the Bard–Stanford collaboration in an article for Stanford Live.

Read the Article

Contact the US-China Music Institute

Bard College | PO Box 5000 | Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000 | [email protected] | 845-758-7026

Bard Conservatory
Bard College
Conservatory of Music
30 Campus Road
Annandale-on-Hudson
New York 12504-5000
845-758-7196
[email protected]
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All photos by Karl Rabe unless stated otherwise.