Beijing Music Festival Announces 2025 Festival

Future Tradition · Moments and New Voices

The Beijing Music Festival (BMF), the most important international multi-day classical music event in China, has announced the details of its 28th festival, taking place October 10–24 under the theme Future Tradition · Moments and New Voices. The festival is a celebration of music and the arts, dedicated to exploring the dialogue between classical and contemporary music and between Eastern music and Western artistic forms. Through diverse performances—including the China premiere of Alban Berg’s groundbreaking 20th-century opera Wozzeck, for its 100th anniversary—the festival will showcase Beijing as a cultural center for innovation, integration, and creativity. 

On August 17th, BMF held a press conference at the Beijing Overseas Cultural Exchange Center, announcing all major programming and activities. Attendees included representatives from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, BMF Artistic Committee Chair Long Yu, who founded the festival in 1998, and BMF Artistic Director Shuang Zou.

“This year’s festival aspires to be a high-caliber, internationally influential artistic celebration,” said Long Yu. “By presenting innovative musical works and formats, the festival will enrich cultural life in the capital.”

“The theme Future Tradition · Moments and New Voices highlights Beijing’s ability to blend traditional essence with innovation,” added Shuang Zou. “It emphasizes its identity as a city steeped in history, yet pulsating with modern energy.”

The 2025 Beijing Music Festival includes world-class performances and cross-cultural collaborations that feature Long Yu—a leading conductor and a pillar of the classical music industry in China—leading the China Philharmonic Orchestra, a longtime BMF collaborator, now celebrating its 25th anniversary; world-renowned conductor Charles Dutoit leading the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra; the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra; soloist Haochen Zhang, the Gold Medalist of the 13th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition; star violinist Gil Shaham; internationally recognized Finnish conductor John Storgårds; Chinese piano prodigy Tianxu An, making his BMF debut performing music by the Russian composer Mikhail Pletnev; Japanese superstar pianist Hayato Sumino; conductor Yang Yang, who serves as artistic director of the Hangzhou Philharmonic Orchestra; Ukrainian conductor Kirill Karabits; British conductor and harpsichordist Harry Bicket; and the Hungarian mezzo-soprano Ildikó Komlósi, among many others.

This year’s operatic programming features Handel’s Baroque classic Rinaldo and the Chinese premiere of Wozzeck. On October 14, Rinaldo will be performed at Forbidden City Concert Hall by The English Concert, one of the world’s leading period instrument ensembles, conducted and accompanied on harpsichord by Harry Bicket. The cast includes the rising Chinese countertenor Liu Shen. The new production of the groundbreaking classic Wozzeck is by the Belgium-based Opera Ballet Vlaanderen. It will be performed by Dutoit and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the premiere of the historic opera.

Committed to spotlighting Chinese composers on its global stage, BMF will also premiere new works by three Chinese composers this year: Du Yun, BMF’s 2019 Artist of the Year and the first Chinese woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music, who returns for the premiere of A Sea Engraved in the Forest; the celebrated composer Huang Ruo, known for blending traditional Chinese motifs with contemporary techniques, premiering City of Floating Sounds; and the emerging Hong Kong composer Elliot Leung premiering Chinese Kitchen: A Feast of Flavors, an orchestral work inspired by Chinese cuisine.

New this year is the BMF Sunshine Youth Music Carnival, offering masterclasses, open music workshops, and interactive performances to increase public engagement. The 28th Beijing Music Festival will also expand beyond traditional venues, bringing music to the city streets, public spaces, and online platforms. The festival will continue its student ticket program while introducing flexible new ticketing options that include festival passes and opera packages. Through the website, official app, WeChat, and video accounts, and the social networking platform Xiaohongshu (RedNote), BMF provides streamlined services and digital experiences. 

For more information, please visit www.bmf.org.cn/en or www.facebook.com/BeijingMusicFestival/  

Beijing Music Festival 2025: Future Tradition · Moments and New Voices

—Long Yu and Haochen Zhang—
October 10, National Centre for the Performing Arts, 7:30 p.m.

• Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1

• Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5

China Philharmonic Orchestra
Long Yu, conductor
Haochen Zhang, piano 

—A Sea Engraved in the Forest—
October 12, Beijing Comedy Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

Du Yun: A Sea Engraved in the Forest (world premiere, co-commissioned by BMF and Lincoln Center)

Du Yun collaborated with the Jino people of Yunnan, China’s last officially recognized ethnic group, to create a work that merges folk traditions with contemporary narrative. The project reflects Du Yun’s mission to preserve endangered cultural heritage while rooting modern music in deep cultural soil. The program exemplifies BMF’s role in bringing Chinese voices into the global cultural dialogue through original music. This program is a joint commission and production by the Beijing Music Festival and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

Ancient Songs of the Jino Ethnic Group
Children’s Songs of the Jino Ethnic Group
Grand Drum Dance of the Jino Ethnic Group 

—Rinaldo—
October 14, Forbidden City Concert Hall, 7:30 p.m. 

George Frideric Handel: Rinaldo, Opera in Three Acts

The English Concert
Harry Bicket, conductor and harpsichord

• Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, Rinaldo (countertenor)

• Mary Bevan, Almirena (soprano)

• Paula Murrihy, Goffredo (mezzo-soprano)

• Alexander Chance, Eustazio (countertenor)

• Ashley Riches, Argante (bass-baritone)

• Rachael Wilson, Armida (mezzo-soprano)

• Andy Shen Liu, Araldo/Donna/Magician (countertenor)

—Melodies in Motion: Spring Bird@ BMF—
October 17, Genesis Beijing, 7:30 p.m.
October 19, Divine Music Administration Temple of Heaven, 5 p.m.

• Frédéric Chopin: Andante Spianato and Grande Polonaise Brilliante, Op. 22

• Amy Beach: Romance, Op. 23

• Clara Schumann: Impromptu in E major

• Gaspar Cassadó: Suite for Solo Cello

• Dmitri Shostakovich: Cello Sonata in D minor, Op. 40

Daniel Wang, cello
Helen Meng, piano

—Wozzeck—
October 18, Poly Theatre, 7:30 p.m. 

Alban Berg: Wozzeck, Opera in three acts (China premiere) 

New production by Opera Ballet Vlaanderen Belgium
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
Beijing Philharmonic Choir
Shanghai Conservatory of Music Choir
Charles Dutoit, conductor
Yifan Sun, assistant conductor
Julia Strelchenko, piano/repetiteur

Johan Simons, director
Sammy Van den Heuvel, scenographer
Greta Goiris, costume designer
Flóra Kruppa, costume designer
Friedrich Rom, lighting designer

• Robin Adams, Wozzeck (baritone)

• Magdalena Hofmann, Marie (mezzo-soprano)

• Michael Schade, Hauptmann (tenor)

• Martin Winkler, Doktor (bass-baritone)

• Samuel Sakker, Tambourmajor (tenor)

• Hugo Kampschreur, Andres (tenor)

• Lotte Verstaen, Margret (mezzo-soprano)

• Rueben Mbonambi, Handwerksbursch I (bass)

• Leander Carlier, Handwerksbursch II (baritone)

• Qirui Cui, Narr (tenor)

—Mikhail Pletnev Performs with the Rachmaninoff International Orchestra—
October 19, Forbidden City Concert Hall, 7:30 p.m. 

• Mikhail Pletnev: 14 Musical Memories

• Mikhail Pletnev: Fantasia Helvetica for two pianos and orchestra 

• Rachmaninoff: Caprice Bohémien

Rachmaninoff International Orchestra
Kirill Karabits, conductor
Mikhail Pletnev, piano
Tianxu An, piano 

—City of Floating Sounds: BBC Philharmonic Special Concert—
October 20, multiple locations (RSVP only), 6 p.m.
October 20, NCPA Concert Hall, 7:30 p.m. 

• Huang Ruo: City of Floating Sounds (city-walk version)

• Huang Ruo: City of Floating Sounds (live version)

• Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3

• Shostakovich: Symphony No. 9

BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
John Storgårds, conductor
Hayato Sumino, piano
Josh Kopeček, creative technologist

—Hayato Sumino Piano Recital—
October 21, Poly Theatre, 7:30 p.m. 

• Frédéric Chopin: Scherzo No. 1 in B Minor, Op. 20

• Frédéric Chopin: Nocturne No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 48

• Hayato Sumino: Three Nocturnes

• Johann Sebastian Bach: Partita No. 2 in C Minor, BWV 826

• Hayato Sumino: Two Pieces of Chopin’s Recompositions

• Johann Sebastian Bach: Prelude and Fugue No. 1 in C Major, BWV 870 from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II

• Friedrich Gulda: Prelude and Fugue

• Nikolai Kapustin: Concert Etudes, Op. 40 Nos. 1, 2 & 3

• Maurice Ravel: Boléro (arr. Hayato Sumino)

Hayato Sumino, piano

—Gil Shaham Performs with the China Philharmonic Orchestra—
October 24, Poly Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

• Elliot Leung: Chinese Kitchen: A Feast of Flavors (selections) (commissioned by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra)

• I. Da Hong Pao

• III. Buddha Jumps Over the Wall

• IV. Peking Duck

• V. Deep Fried River Prawns

• IX. Glutinous Rice in Bamboo Tube

• X. Deep Fried Sesame Balls/Finale

• Johannes Brahms: Alto Rhapsody, Op. 53

• Johannes Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77

China Philharmonic Orchestra
China National Opera House Chorus
Yang Yang, conductor
Gil Shaham, violin
Ildikó Komlósi, mezzo-soprano
Central Opera House Chorus

—Additional events—

• October 6–8: Youth Orchestra Showcase at the Beijing Music Industry Park, featuring student ensembles from universities, and primary and secondary schools in Beijing and other provinces. 

• October 11: Du Yun leads a forum titled Future · Tradition, at Hongsheng International Center, to explore how traditional Chinese music can be transformed in modern composition, underlining BMF’s core theme and Beijing’s vision for innovation with integrity. 

• October 15: Tianxu An performs a midday recital at CITIC Tower, combining classical masterpieces with contemporary works in a city landmark.

• October 17: Charles Dutoit and director Johan Simons discuss the artistic significance of Wozzeck in a special preview event at Genesis Beijing, offering insight into this landmark expressionist opera.

• October 17, Rising Voices: Cellist Tianyou Wang and pianist Huaying Meng offer a Romantic recital featuring works by Chopin and Clara Schumann. The performance highlights a fresh interpretation of Romanticism from a new generation’s lens.

• October 18: BBC Philharmonic Orchestra presents Musical Storyland, a children’s concert at Genesis Beijing, blending storytelling and classical music in an interactive experience. 11–11:45 a.m.

• October 21: Hayato Sumino Meet and Greet, at Winland Beijing IFC. 12–1 p.m. 

• October 22: Ildikó Komlósi Masterclass

• October 23: Gil Shaham Masterclass 

More about the Beijing Music Festival
Since its founding in 1998 by conductor Long Yu, BMF offers a glimpse into the future of classical music, creating a platform for domestic and international performance exchanges, turning Beijing into an international music hub every fall. Now led by Artistic Director Shuang Zou, the festival bridges China to the rest of the world through the arts, also galvanizing the creation of Western and Chinese contemporary music. BMF lets young Chinese musicians showcase their talents from a platform with global reach, which has been the driving force for Long Yu, the former artist director who now serves as the chairman of the Artistic Committee, for many years. BMF is the most authoritative arts and culture event in Asia.

Los Angeles Times: 23rd Beijing Music Festival to Kick Off in October Featuring Virtual Performances

Los Angeles Times

The 23rd Beijing Music Festival is scheduled to kick off in October this year, back with a bang as it features a mix of physical, virtual performances and more than 240 hours of uninterrupted audio-visual performances for music lovers.

Read more here.

Classical Voice North America: Beijing Music Festival is Innovative

Classical Voice North America
Thomas May

“Golden Week” is the name for the national holiday period held in the People’s Republic of China at the beginning of October. This year, it also signaled an earlier-than-usual start to the annual Beijing Music Festival (BMF) — the country’s largest and most extensive festival devoted to classical music.

BMF, which unfolds over the course of the month, is also spread out spatially. This year, in its 22^nd edition, BMF took place in venues dispersed across this vast, sprawling, restlessly energetic city: from the Poly Theatre and the Forbidden City Concert Hall to an exhibition space in the lively nightlife district of Sanlitun and the enormous, egg-shaped National Centre for the Performing Arts (where the grand opening was held on October 9 for the first time in BMF history). It even extended to the Great Wall north of Beijing (specifically, the Wall’s Shuiguan section).

To read more, click here.

The Beijinger: Beijing Music Festival Returns Oct. 4-28

The Beijinger
Will Griffith

One of the world’s leading music festivals since 1998, the Beijing Music Festival returns this month with operas, symphony concerts, recitals, chamber concerts, and more. To read more about the festival of 22 shows, click here.

OperaWire: The Beijing Music Festival As A Microcosm For The Great Chinese City

OperaWire
Francisco Salazar

The Beijing Music Festival is celebrating its 21st anniversary by bringing a diverse array of repertoire intent on exploring its innovative and boundary-crossing initiatives.

This year alone, the festival is showcasing a half-dozen diverse works of music drama and theatre.

Read more here.

South China Morning Post: Passing the baton: Chinese conductors finally get their chance on the big stage

South China Morning Post (via AFP)
Julien Girault (AFP)

After years of relying on Westerners, symphony orchestras across China are turning to a fresh generation of Chinese musical directors.

Jing Huan, one of a new generation of Chinese conductors, performing in Beijing (AFP Photo/WANG Zhao)

Jing Huan twirls her conductor's baton nervously in the wings while the brass and string sections of China's Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra tune their instruments.

Aged 36, Jing is part of a new breed of foreign-trained conductors, as China hopes to gain recognition in the field after winning global fame for its soloists, including piano and string virtuosos...

Last year her orchestra performed on a prestigious Beijing stage as part of a "musical marathon" that saw nine ensembles play one after another to mark the 20th anniversary of the Beijing Music Festival...

China has come a long way however, said Long Yu, 54, artistic director of the Shanghai and Guangzhou symphony orchestras, and founder of the Beijing Music Festival.

"I grew up in Shanghai in the midst of the Cultural Revolution," a period of political turmoil from 1966-1976 during which Western music was banned, the maestro told AFP.

Long secretly learned the piano from his grandfather, a renowned composer, and in the 1980s became one of the first Chinese musicians to study abroad as the Communist government started to open up to the rest of the world.

Read more here and read the original AFP article here.

BBC Music: An interview with conductor Long Yu

BBC Music magazine
Freya Parr

Conductor Long Yu is at the forefront of today's classical music scene in China, where he holds major posts with the China Philharmonic Orchestra, Shanghai and Guangzhou Symphony Orchestras, and the MISA Shanghai Summer Festival. He also conducts orchestras around the globe, from New York to London.

It’s been a month of big changes for Long Yu. He has signed to Deutsche Grammophon with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and has announced that he will be stepping down from his role as artistic director of the prestigious Beijing Music Festival, which he founded in 1998.

Over the years, the festival has hosted artists including pianists Martha Argerich, Murray Perahia and Jean-Yves Thibaudet, violinist Maxim Vengerov and conductor Valery Gergiev. Shuang Zou, who was been the festival's assistant programming director for several years, will take over as the festival's new artistic director.

Read more here.

TimeOut Beijing: The best of Beijing Music Festival 2017

TimeOut Beijing

Beijing's premier music festival turns 20 this year.

The very definition of a Beijing institution, this year the Beijing Music Festival (BMF) celebrates two decades and counting. Beijingers have grown accustomed to top music talent trolling through the city, but it was the BMF that first catapulted China onto the world stage. This year, the creative programming continues apace with an evening of Welsh music, a celebration of Chinese contemporary composers, Beijing’s first Beethoven symphonic cycle, a 12-hour musical marathon and opera events ranging from a single cast member to full-stage Wagner. With opening and closing concerts featuring Frank Peter and Serge Zimmerman (pictured top right), and Maxim Vengerov respectively, Beijing is where you want to be this month.

Orchestral marathon

Wear comfy clothes, bring energy bars and settle in for a long but exhilarating day – even buying one half-day ticket gets you into five concerts. The marathon’s part one (10am-3pm) is a collection of lighter global favourites, such as the always popular Brahms’ Hungarian Dance No 5, Elgar’s Liebesgruss, Bizet’s Carmen Prelude, Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra, Lu and Mao’s Dance of the Yao People, Hua and Wu’s The Moon Over a Fountain, Wang Xilin’s (known as China’s Shostakovich) triumphant Torch Festival, and the like. Part two (5pm-10pm) takes on some weight in the form of composer, conductor and China favourite Krzysztof Penderecki’s Chinese Songs, featuring baritone Yuan Chenye (the 'B' cast for Placido Domingo’s 'A' when in China). We’ll also see China’s cello luminary Wang Jian playing Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme, and He Ziyu perform the rarely-heard Glazunov’s Violin Concerto in A minor. Other pieces include Stravinsky’s The Firebird (1919 Version) and Smetana’s Die Moldau. Something for everyone – especially those with stamina.

BMF opera

For a while, the BMF was Beijing’s only opera game in town, and even today its programming stands out. This year offers three vastly different performances, from the minimalist to the complex, from the mundane to the fantastic. Poulenc’s La Voix Humaine (Thu 19-Sat 21) (the human voice) is a heart-wrenching and deeply personal look at a solitary woman whose former boyfriend is getting married the following day. In the days before drunk texting, an ill-advised phone call was a spurned lover’s only option, and this lonely soprano makes that final call. (Although most versions are sung in monologue, this one incorporates a dancer for mood – a risky call, since this story stands on its own). Continuing its experiments with digital opera, the BMF also presents the Immersive Opera Vixen (Mon 9-Wed 11). This is a 360-degree take on Leos Janacek’s Cunning Little Vixen, his unusual work drawn from a serialised novel that traces the lifecycles of a wily fox, her animal counterparts, and some hapless humans. In this case, the vixen (Rosie Lomas) is a street urchin, and the live singers mix with pre-recorded music audiences hear on headphones as they immerse themselves by promenading through various rooms. As for Wagner, we’re immersed whether we like it or not. This year, BMF delivers part two of the famous (or infamous, in terms of length) Ring Cycle. Die Walkure (Tue 24, Fri 27) continues where Das Rheingold left off, and sees the warrior Siegmund falling in love with his estranged sister Sieglinde – the result is Siegfried, which takes us to part three. Another time. This is a co-production with Salzburg Easter Festival and makes its Asian premiere at the BMF. If you see one Ring Cycle work, see the one with the Ride of Valkyries, and channel your inner helicopter.

Beethoven cycle

Speaking of massive works, the BMF hosts Paavo Jarvi and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen in the city’s first Beethoven symphonic cycle. Beethoven’s symphonies literally changed music forever; they were so intimidating to his contemporaries – not to mention his musical descendants –that the number nine became a curse. Now you can see why, in four easy concerts. Eroica (Sun 22) takes on the first, second and third symphonies; Destiny (Mon 23) covers the fourth and the fifth, Pastoral (Wed 25) is for numbers six and seven, and Choral (Thu 26) concludes brilliantly with symphonies eight and nine.

Traditional meets contemporary

These back-to-back concerts combine BMF’s love of folk music with its championing of modern composers. Thriving Artistry of Contemporary China (Mon 16) features Zhang Qianyi’s Yunnan Capriccio Orchestral Suite, Guo Wenjing’s Lotus (Lianhua) Overture for Symphony Orchestra and Zhou Long’s Beijing Rhyme: Symphonic Suite For Orchestra. Zhou and Guo were part of the now legendary 'first class' of Central Conservatory of Music composition students after the schools were reopened in 1977, a group that also included Tan Dun, Ye Xiaogang and Chen Yi. But if the contemporary proves to be too much, relax with some trad music in Walking Around The World (Tue 17). Breathing fire into earthy tradition is the Welsh group Calan, which includes the multi-talented Bethan Williams-Jones, a singer-dancer-pianist- accordion player, as well as harpist Alice French, guitarist Sam Humphreys and fiddlers Patrick Rimes and Angharad Jenkins. Expect to tap your toes.

Global Times: Tan Dun and Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra perform at The Orange

A part of the ongoing Beijing Music Festival (BMF), Chinese conductor Tan Dun presented a concert on Saturday at The Orange in Beijing with the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra. 

The one-hour mini concert, which marked the 15th anniversary of Tan and the BMF's collaboration, included two pieces from Tan: Secret of Wind and Birds and Farewell My Concubine. 

According to the conductor, Secret of Wind and Birds was commissioned by Carnegie Hall and the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America. Before the concert, Tan uploaded recordings of bird sounds made using musical instruments that audiences could download to their smartphones. During the performance, Tan gave cues to the audience to play the recordings, so they could become part of the orchestra themselves.  

Farewell My Concubine combines Peking Opera with piano to tell the life story of Yu Ji, a concubine that lived during the 3rd century BC.

Beijing Music Festival Pays Tribute to William Shakespeare

The Beijing Music Festival (BMF), having opened to record crowds this season, will kick off a series of events honoring the 400th Anniversary of Shakespeare’s death. The highlight of this homage will be a production of Benjamin Britten’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, directed by Robert Carsen in collaboration with the Festival d’Aix en Provence. Not only has this 1991 production never been seen outside of Europe--this will be the first-ever performance of Britten’s 20th century masterpiece in China.

A “Cross-Over Celebration”
The BMF is will commemorate William Shakespeare with a selection of musical works related to and inspired by his plays. Highlights include Mendelssohn’s Overture from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream (October 10th) performed by the West Australian Symphony, as well as Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet” Overture-Fantasy, Richard Strauss’ “Macbeth”, William Walton’s “As you Like It”, and Vaughn Williams’ “Serenade to Music”, performed by the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra and Guangzhou Youth Orchestra. But BMF director Tu Song highlights Britten’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream” as the main event: “We have invited world famous drama director Robert Carsen…to make something new under an old title”. Carsen is noted in China for his highly successful 2010 staging of Wagner’s “Ring Cycle” in Shanghai. The opera will be accompanied by the China Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Stuart Bedford.

The BMF has a tradition of celebrating anniversaries with musical tributes. In 2006 the festival paid homage to Mozart and Shostakovich for their 250th and 100th birthday’s respectively. Other anniversaries have included Wagner, Verdi, Mahler, Richard Strauss, and Chopin.  

About the Beijing Music Festival
Held over 4 weeks every October, BMF is the most important cultural event in China. The Festival and its Founder and Artistic Director, Maestro Long Yu, pioneer China’s unique musical voice. The festival has presented numerous historical performances such as the China premiere of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 8 (2002), the Asian premiere of Alban Berg's opera, “Lulu” (2002); Guo Wenjing's operas, “Ye Yan” (2003) and “Wolf Club Village” (2003); and the China premiere of Richard Wagner's complete Ring Cycle (2005). BMF’s co-commission with Opera Boston, “Madame White Snake,” was awarded the 2011 Pulitzer Prize.