Music at the journey's end

Chamber music is different.

Listening becomes as important as playing.

So does conversation.

Festival organizers hope those conversations continue beyond the stage. Audiences are encouraged to meet performers over coffee or during talks and workshops before hearing them perform later that evening.

"It's almost magical for someone attending their first classical concert," Shi says. "You realize musicians are ordinary people."

The opening concert will feature programs including Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly's Sonata for Solo Cello, Op 8, Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu's Three Madrigals for Violin and Viola and Czech composer Antonin Dvorak's Piano Quintet No 2 in A Major, Op 81, B 155. Musicians, including violinists Shen Danfeng and Liu Fanglei, pianist Shi, and cellist Chen, will perform at the opening concert.

The following concerts will present works including Divertimento in E-flat Major, K 563, Mozart's celebrated string trio for violin, viola and cello, Dmitri Shostakovich's Piano Trio No 1 in C Minor, Op 8 and Piano Trio No 2 in E Minor, Op 67, and Beethoven's Violin Sonata No 9 in A Major, Op 47, Kreutzer in string quintet arrangement.

"It started as my own idea. Slowly, it became everyone's celebration," says Shi, when asked about the process of designing the programs.

Echo Valley is more than a series of four concerts. Nearly 30 events — from jazz performances and outdoor film screenings to lectures and workshops — invite visitors to linger, explore, and continue the conversations sparked by the music. Shi hopes audiences leave with memories that extend far beyond the repertoire.

"Perhaps they'll remember the wind accompanying a cello, or rain falling during an outdoor performance," she says. "In cities, people often squeeze concerts into busy schedules. They arrive just before the lights dim and leave moments after the final bow.

"Echo Valley asks something different," she says. "It asks people to stay — to walk a little farther after the music ends."

Contact the writer at chennan@chinadaily.com.cn