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The "Melody from Beijing" concert resounded in the famous Megaron Athens Concert Hall on the evening of March 20 during the staging of the "Beijing Melody in Athens" concert series for the promotion of tourism in Beijing. Wei Zhou, who has been honored as an "Erhu Ambassador" for his substantial influence on both the domestic and international stage, and Jing Yang, one of China's preeminent Pipa players who has been widely praised for her stage presence, jointly presented an attractive Beijing with traditional oriental musical instruments.
The two great musicians led the audience into a classical Beijing atmosphere with their skilful performance of traditional Erhu and Pipa music centred on the theme of Beijing. They also performed contemporary Eastern and Western masterpieces in cooperation with the City of Athens Symphony Orchestra, headed by the famous conductor Eleftherios Kalkanis, to not only deliver the essence of Chinese folk music through exquisite and delicate expression, but also showcase the epitome of modern Beijing.
The "Melody from Beijing" Chinese folk music concert was organized by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development under the auspices of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Beijing municipal government, the City of Athens, the City of Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the City of Athens Cultural, Sports and Youth Organization. It marks the highlight of the series of events titled "Overseas Beijing Tourism Promotion Series Project -- Athens Station".
At the concert, which saw the combination of musical works of different styles with folk, classical and contemporary elements, music became a bridge linking the famous cities of Beijing and Athens, showcasing Beijing as a world-class tourism city and an international metropolis embracing both ancient and modern civilizations. The head of the City Image and Marketing Department at the Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development introduced tourism in Beijing at the concert and invited visitors from Greece and Europe to the city to experience the unique charm of the culture-enriched, green and high-tech city. George Broulias, President of the City of Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau, described the concert as highly exciting and a passionate engagement between classical occidental civilization and traditional oriental culture. He said that multi-dimensional cooperation in tourism between Athens and Beijing, which are destinations and sources of tourism to each other, is of great importance for furthe ring cultural exchange, enhancing economic and trade cooperation and improving mutual understanding between people from both cities.
Despite the short promotional period for the concert, the audience from Athens showed unexpectedly high levels of enthusiasm, and the official free ticket hotline experienced several call congestions. At the concert, the performance hall was fully packed, and the vast majority of tickets had been sold. The performance received a warm response and thunderous applause from the audience. The pieces for the encore carefully selected by the musicians took the concert to new heights and won enduring applause. The success of the concert and the enthusiasm of the audience were full manifestations of the friendship between Beijing and Athens. Some members of the audience at the concert said it was their first experience of a live Pipa and Erhu performance and it was a very impressive one. They not only felt the charm of Chinese music but also became eager to go to Beijing and experience the unique culture and customs of the city.
Introductions to six carefully selected world cultural heritage sites in Beijing took place alongside the musical performances. During the intermission, the audience was invited to fill in a questionnaire and nearly 90 percent of the respondents said that they were eager to visit Beijing for sightseeing, signaling the success of the concert.
In recent years, the Beijing Commission of Tourism Development has held a series of events for the promotion of the city's image overseas in various popular forms. The events have received enthusiastic responses from tourists and proved to be highly visible and influential awareness-raising publicity vehicles for marketing Beijing internationally.
