October 18 2009
Performing in Beijing
By: Ron Prussing, Sydney Symphony Principal Trombone
Got up early and after unsuccessfully trying to contact my wife on skype I got ready and went to our first rehearsal in Beijing at the Forbidden City concert hall. I was quite thrilled to be in a concert hall in the middle of the most populous country in the world bringing some of the heights of western culture to their country. I thought ‘how far has the world come’ - we have a Russian conductor, conducting an Australian orchestra in a communist country. Amazing!
Once the rehearsal was over I realised we were already in the precincts of the Forbidden City so I decided that as I had not seen it before (this is my first trip to mainland China) I would go through it. Trumpeter Anthony Heinrichs joined me and we went and saw this extraordinary wonder of the world. We got a ticket pretty quickly and went in and I was absolutely aghast at the sheer size of the place and what must have been extraordinary opulence and an unimaginably privileged lifestyle for those times. Anthony had the map and I had the camera and we started to get an idea of the sheer size of the place. I was very impressed with the ornate décor on the buildings and their extraordinary design.
We walked for about 2 hours before turning around and walking through the city back towards Tiananmen Square. I was equally aghast at the size of the square and what this area has represented historically both to the Chinese people and the rest of the world.
Afterwards we proceeded to jump on the fantastic subway that is only 2 Yuan (approx 40c Australian) to anywhere you want to go. It is terribly easy to navigate and is wonderfully reliable.
Had a quick shower at the hotel. Had a bite to eat in the hotel café with colleagues and then it was off to the concert.
The reception for the orchestra and the soloist, Behzod Abduraimov, was spectacular and very warm. At the end of the Prokofiev Symphony No.5 the audience were initially reserved and then I think they came to realise the experience they had just had with a great orchestra and a legendary musician conducting. Then the cheering started and with Mr Ashkenazy’s enthusiasm the audience responded with a standing ovation.
This has been a wonderful start to what I think is going to be an exciting time in Asia. I’m absolutely overwhelmed at how well the city of Beijing is organised given its extraordinary number of people.
The city seems to work. It seems to be very modern and from what I have understood China to be like 20 or 30 years ago they must have come an enormously long way in the areas of cultural diversity and organisation. It seems like China is open for business.
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