Last October, the awarding ceremony of the piano short video contest, co-sponsored by Wanlin Art Museum and Wuhan Qintai Piano Museum, took place at the basement of Wanlin Art Museum and rounded off the four-month piano exhibition.
The Wanlin Museum Hall
Starting in June, the piano exhibition accompanied visitors throughout this summer. The opening ceremony took the innovative form of a flash mob. First one by one, then all together, ten players played The Danube Waves in the hall of Wanlin Art Museum. Three girls shuttled in the music of the piano and crowd, dancing to the rhythm. Impressed by the creativity of the show, after the performance, some audiences couldn’t help but play the piano themselves.
The Flash Mob
To provide a stunning visual and acoustic feast, since July, dozens of volunteers were invited every day to play the painted pianos in the hall. Visitors could enjoy appealing melodies while studying the history of the piano and appreciating displayed antique pianos.
During the display period, the piano exhibition welcomed nearly 150 thousand visitors on and off the campus. Guide service volunteers introduced the exhibition for more than 120 times. Piano playing volunteers performed more than 270 hours. Also, participants attending the contest covered a broad age spectrum, from 5 to 62 years old; and had very diversified backgrounds, from pupils to professional pianists. Clerks of China Construction Bank Wuhan Jiang’an Sub Branch sang My Motherland and Me to the piano, celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
Clerks of China Construction Bank Wuhan Jiang’an Sub Branch
Professor Li Ge from Department of Arts, the judge of the contest and the host of the awarding ceremony, thinks highly of the exhibition and the contest. “This exhibition is a platform for the public to learn more about Wuhan University with its strong ambience of arts. The participants are lucky enough to have the chance to learn the piano and persist in playing the piano.” Ni Wan, the Associate Curator of Wanlin Art Museum also adds that “Due to volunteers’ unconditional devotion and participants’ high enthusiasm, besides the wonderful exhibition, several excellent social education activities are held successfully, which have a positive influence on not only teachers and students, but also the public. This is what a university museum should do.”
Yu Mingxi
After the awarding section, some of the prize winners performed on an exhibited antique piano. Yu Mingxi, a five-year-old pupil, attached importance to tonight’s performance, and her mother even brought her an elegant evening dress. She played Chopin Waltz, which was her mother’s best-loved one. “This contest really enriched my daughter’s performing experience. As the youngest volunteer, it was challenging for her to perform in front of hundreds of visitors, and she did a good job,” said Yu’s mother. Chen Wu, an art student of WHU, played Jester. “It is wondrous to play on the antique piano. I hope Wanlin can hold more exhibitions about music,” she said. Chang Weiche, a WHU student from Taiwan played The Goldberg Variations. Enlightened and encouraged by his father, he started learning piano since kindergarten. Due to health reasons, he suspended his learning for several times but never gave up. “Teachers and volunteers have done a lot for the exhibition and the contest. It would be better if we strengthened the publicity, then more people would know and attend these activities,” he added.
Chen Wu
Chang Weiche
Photo by Shen Yujie, China Construction Bank Wuhan Jiang’an Sub Branch and Zhang Zhiyu
Editted by Wan Qian, Geng Jinwei and Hu Sijia
