Concert plays hit songs from Red Chamber TV series

A concert on the theme of the TV series Dream of the Red Chamber by the National Traditional Orchestra Academia China was staged at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing on Tuesday.

Under the baton of conductor Xu Zhijun, the orchestra of the China Conservatory of Music performed songs by Chinese composer Wang Liping from the 1987 TV series Dream of the Red Chamber. The 36-episode series was based on the novel written by Cao Xueqin during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Soprano Wu Bixia performed in the concert. Since 2005, Wu has been touring the country performing concerts featuring songs from the 1987 TV series.

"When the TV series first aired, I was about 12 years old. I was born into a musical family and loved to sing. I memorized all the lyrics and melodies of the songs from the TV series," recalls Wu, who is a professor of the opera department of the China Conservatory of Music. "I also taught my classmates to sing the songs in school.

"The songs are very catchy and beautiful. They sounded very different compared to other songs at that time. Without a high pitch or any intention to show off the composer's techniques, the songs were very simple but deeply touched my heart."

Ten songs and five instrumental music works were played during the concert, taking audiences down memory lane.

The Beijing Musicians Association Chorus also joined in the concert.