Formed in 1977, the Beijing Symphony Orchestra is one of the best-known Chinese orchestras. Each year it gives over eighty concerts and its repertoire embraces the full spectrum of styles and genres. This is reflected in their Budapest concert, in which they will perform a highly popular piece from the European repertoire alongside works by composers not known in Hungary. Alexander Arutjunjan was born in 1920 and like his compatriot and predecessor Khatchaturian, Armenian folklore plays an important role in his music. He made his reputation with his Cantata of my Homeland as well as his Trumpet Concerto, which was composed in 1950. Many distinguished soloists have performed with the Beijing Symphony Orchestra including Sarah Chang, Lazar Berman and Vadim Repin. This time they are joined by the only thirty two year old winner of the 2008 Echo Klassik Prize, Gábor Boldoczki who has been internationally renowned for several years now. The Beijing orchestra is committed to popularising contemporary Chinese music. This is why they bring with them a concerto by Guo Wenjing who is in his early fifties. The soloist will be Li Biao who gave the world première of the piece in March 2008. He trained also in Europe and came second at the 1993 Debrecen Percussion Competition. The music director and principal conductor of the Beijing Symphony Orchestra, Tan Lihua is an expert on contemporary music (he has premièred several hundred works and also composes himself) but he has also given Chinese premières of many works from the classical repertoire.

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