Nestled by the side of both East Lake and Yue Lake on Wuhan University’s campus, the first official concert hall of Wuhan University was inaugurated on April 9. The impressive facility was named after esteemed WHU alumni and its donator Luo Aiping, who graduated with a bachelor of science degree in 1982.
The building design inherits its style from other buildings on campus, characterized by cyan tiles adorning the rooftop and eaves, and the concert hall itself exudes a graceful harmony like a melodious song. On their ascent of the stairs, visitors are enveloped in an aura of elegance and solemnity that epitomizes the essence of the concert hall.
Exterior of the Aiping Concert Hall. (Credits: WHU WeChat)
Inside are three floors, functioning respectively as backstage, the main stage and seating area. Inspired by the shoebox structure of the Golden Hall in Vienna, the concert hall in Wuhan University has been designed to offer an exceptional acoustic experience. The hall boasts more than 300 seats, offering a space for more students to appreciate performances up close.
Seating area inside the Aiping Concert Hall. (Credits: WHU WeChat)
During the opening ceremony, Mr. Luo Aiping delivered a speech, saying that "In the hearts of every Wuhan University student, there are the most cherished memories of their alma mater. Wuhan University integrates nature and culture and those forges the simple and romantic qualities of Wuhan University hostages." He also expressed his excitement about having the chance to contribute to the development of the school where he spent his youth.
Mr. Luo Aiping during his speech. (Credits: WHU WeChat)
Before the opening ceremony, the Aiping Concert Hall welcomed its first trailblazing performance on March 16, which brought great surprises and precious enjoyment to both the performers and the audience. "I have been looking forward to a concert hall since I became a student of Wuhan University, and it’s our sincere hope that the concert hall will be a place specially built for art, providing professional venues for artistic performances." As Cheng Qirui, one of the performers from the Haiyan choir said, most people in WHU have waited for this performance for a long time.
The performance, brought by the Wuhan University Student Art Troupe, began at 7:30 with the song "Fangxiang", which means "direction" in English. With its beautiful notes and harmonious melodies echoing in the concert hall, the song written by Jiang Xiuxiang and composed by Huang Wen depicts the story of Luojia’s youth overcoming countless obstacles, becoming more confident and persevering. As the first song, it offered immense satisfaction to the audience. Zheng Zijun, a student from the School of Literature, contented: "The combination of a song created by Wuhan University herself and the Haiyan Choir, a pretty professional and experienced group of people, is really wonderful and amazing and has strong artistic appeal and rich cultural heritage."
The Haiyan Choir performing (credits: Wuhan University Student Union, WeChat)
Then, the Haiyan Choir brought many other marvelous songs to the audience, including "La La Land", a popular song blending happiness and soreness, and "Yu yang pi gu dong di lai",which means "The Fisherman's Song and Drum Move the Earth" and was sung by five students, deeply moving the audience. Eventually, conducted by the teacher of the art troupe, the choir ended the first half of the performance with the song "If music be the food of love", earning thunderous applause from the audience.
Five students singing "Yu yang pi gu dong di lai"(Credits: Tianmen Chu Merchant Federation, WeChat)
After a short break, the second half of the performance commenced with "Dunhuang", a piece of ethnic Chamber music performed by the folk orchestra of Wuhan University. The music cleverly utilizes the characteristics of Chinese musical instruments, revealing a simple and solemn yet vibrant Dunhuang painting scroll. Following this was a song brought in collaboration between the aymphony orchestra and the folk orchestra, titled "Joyful Journey to China". This song seamlessly mixed symphony and folk music, demonstrating various elements of music and showing the never-ending and timeless Chinese culture, which left a deep impression on the audience.
The third song was a violin concerto called "Liangzhu", which describes the depressing and famous love story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai in ancient China. Performed by the symphony orchestra, "Liangzhu" pushed the whole performance to its highest point, with its unique ethnic style and vivid and moving musical images. Not only the audience but also the performers were deeply moved. "It was the first time for me to listen to "Liangzhu" fully on site, and I was totally immersed in the compelling show.", said Huang Yuqing, a member of the audience from the school of economy. Actually, the performers seemed to be even more excited, as Chen Taoyu, a member of the symphony orchestra, recalled: "I was too excited when the song came to the part where Zhu Yingtai collides with a tomb, resulting in the back foot of my seat hanging in the air."
The symphony orchestra of Wuhan University performing (Credits: Wuhan University Student Union, WeChat)
At the end of the wonderful night, all of the performers and the audience sang the song "My country" and the school song of Wuhan University in unison, putting the perfect ending to an unforgettable performance. "I truly think the performance exceeded my expectations, and the new concert hall is really a musical holy land. I hope that the hall can remain clear, clean and pure, and that we can have more opportunities to practice and perform in it in the future." The thought of Yang Jingchi, one of the performers, represents the thoughts of most of us. In short, we are sincerely waiting for more performances in the hall, and look forward to jointly composing a new chapter of the Aiping Concert Hall.
A group photo of the participants (Credits: Tianmen Chu Merchant Federation, WeChat)
