Carnegie dream comes true

Besides the Beijing Youth Orchestra, four other ensembles will be featured in the festival, including the National Children's Symphony of Venezuela, the Africa United Youth Orchestra, the European Union Youth Orchestra and the Afghan Youth Orchestra. These five orchestras, along with Carnegie Hall's National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America and NYO2, a free orchestra program that joins with the NYO, will perform at Carnegie Hall from Thursday to Aug 7.

In addition to public performances at Carnegie Hall, the community of more than 700 young musicians from around the globe will take part in cultural exchanges and communal music-making experiences throughout the week.

"This unique event not only showcases the vibrant musical prowess of China's youth but also underscores the power of music education in fostering global understanding and collaboration," says conductor Lyu, who is the artistic director of the Beijing Youth Orchestra and the music director of the NCPA in Beijing.

During the concert on Aug 4, Lyu will lead the Beijing Youth Orchestra to perform Chinese works, including Selections from Chinese Sights and Sounds by composer Bao Yuankai and Pipa Concerto No 2 by composer Zhao Jiping. Veteran pipa (a traditional four-stringed Chinese lute) player Wu Man will join in the concert. The concert will also stage Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 5 in E minor, Op 64.

According to Lyu, the Beijing Youth Orchestra, co-launched by the Beijing Municipal Education Commission and the NCPA in June, consists of about 130 young people aged from 14 to 24.

It gathers students from three schools in the capital: the Central Conservatory of Music, the High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China and Beijing 101 Middle School.

"These young people learned to play music as children and they represent the culmination of years of dedicated training and a passion for music," says Lyu, adding that the music pieces to be staged at Carnegie Hall will showcase Chinese musical traditions and the young musicians' ability to interpret Western classics.

"With our training and their hard work, they sound like a professional symphony orchestra," he adds.

During a recent rehearsal at the NCPA in Beijing, Lyu led the Beijing Youth Orchestra to perform Bao's Selections from Chinese Sights and Sounds, including Dui Hua (Dialogue on Flowers), a piece combining symphonic music with Chinese folk elements. Under the guidance of the experienced conductor and principal musicians of the China NCPA Orchestra — the resident symphony orchestra of the NCPA — these young musicians have honed their skills, mastering classical compositions and contemporary pieces alike, preparing to showcase their talents on an international stage.