Chinese enthusiasts of Western music have just bid farewell to the Vienna Philharmonic headed by Seiji Ozawa and are awaiting the opening night of another world-class orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra.
Driven by the profitable and growing Chinese market, a spate of world-class orchestras have come to entertain Chinese who are willing to pay 2,800 yuan (340 US dollars) for premium seats.
Sources with one of the organizers revealed the average price of the tickets for the London Symphony Orchestra hit a record 1,000 yuan in Beijing, but it did not discourage Beijingers.
"We only have some 1,000 seats for the sole performance by London Symphony Orchestra in China. The sales went well and 60 of the hundred 2,800-yuan premium seats have been sold," said Tang Xiaolei, an employee with the organizer, Poly Culture and Art Co. Ltd.
"The performance of the Vienna Philharmonic has stirred interest among Chinese music lovers, and heated the market," Tang said.
The Broadway opera, Cats, dubbed "the musical of the century", has just announced it will open in China in April. Visits are also planned by the classic rock band Deep Purple and singer Sarah Brightman, who performs both classical and pop music.
"With the intensified cultural exchanges since China's opening, Chinese are embracing more Western art forms," said Han Zhongjie, former director of the China Central Orchestra. "Some of them really have a taste for it."
"Another reason is that Chinese people are better off and they can afford the expensive tickets now," he said.
Cheng, who took his family to the performance by Seiji Ozawa's Vienna Philharmonic said, "It was fantastic. I am glad that my son could hear a world-class orchestra as the chance is very rare."
Western performing arts giants are shifting their attentions to China, believing they can make great profits.
Moya Doherty, one of the producers with the Riverdance: the New Show, said China was the world's most promising market and she was excited that the door was open to foreign performers.
However, China's promising arts market also faces problems.
Han Zhongjie, who has directed the Boston Symphony Orchestra at US-based Tanglewood, warned, "None of the
Beijing theaters or music halls can compete with the Tanglewood and that will surely jeopardize the acoustics.
"Not all of the audience have a good understanding of the music," Han added, "It was kind of embarrassing to hear improper applause at the coda of Richard Strauss's Don Juan when Seiji Ozawa directed in Beijing."
