The media conference of 2018 Belt & Road Shenzhen International Music Festival.

The second Belt & Road Shenzhen International Music Festival will hit town in March with 17 high-end concerts performed by renowned musicians and orchestras from home and abroad, announced the Shenzhen Municipal Government at a media conference yesterday.

“With the first international music festival successfully held last year, we are expecting an even more inclusive, global and high-end music festival this year,” said Ye Xiaogang, deputy director of the Chinese Musicians Association and also a well-known composer in China.

The festival, continuing last year’s theme, Connect China and the World, is co-organized by the national-level association and the Shenzhen Municipal Government. It is an answer to China’s Belt & Road Initiative in the sector of culture and music.

Lasting for over a month from March 23 to April 29, a total of 17 concerts will be held at major theaters in Shenzhen, while the tickets to the concerts will be priced much lower than market-driven concerts, with the lowest price at 100 yuan (US$15.79) and the highest at 980 yuan.

Ye said that this year’s music festival remains an inclusive feature with multiple forms of music from home and abroad, including classical, traditional, jazz, symphony, solo, instrumental and more.

The opening ceremony of the first Belt & Road Shenzhen International Music Festival held last year.

One of the highlights of this year’s festival is the opening concert on the night of March 23. Like last year, a special orchestra consisting of players from China and musicians from other countries will perform to kick off the music festival.

Renowned Argentina bandoneon player Walter Rios and French trumpeter Luciene Renaudin Vary will play solo at the opening concert. Chinese musicians and artists, including baritone singer Wang Yunpeng from Shenzhen, Chinese folk song artist Lei Jia and performing artist Pu Cunxi will also be on stage that night.

“The opening concert is a very comprehensive performance that shows a variety of the best music and performances,” said Ye, whose symphonic poem titled “Lu Xun” will be performed on April 28 at Shenzhen Concert Hall. The symphony features articles written by Lu Xun, one of the most influential Chinese writers of the 20th century.

There will also be concerts of traditional Chinese music, a symphony performed by the Russian Symphony Orchestra, piano solos delivered by Russian pianist Nikolai Demidenko, jazz performed by Cuban band Tiempo Libre and Iranian traditional folk music, among others.