'Hope – Portrait Concert of Guan Xia' presented in Beijing

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As part of the annual Beijing Modern Music Festival (BMMF) which kicked off on May 19, a special concert dedicated to renowned Chinese composer Guan Xia was staged at the Beijing Concert Hall Tuesday night.

The concert featured the China National Symphony Orchestra and many of Guan's masterpieces were presented.

The concert opened with "Symphony Overture No.1", a famous piece composed by Guan Xia in 2003, which has since been played by many renowned orchestras in China and around the globe.

Later in the evening, the China National Symphony Orchestra went under the baton of Chinese Grammy-winning conductor Tang Muhai.

A poster for "Hope – Portrait Concert of Guan Xia" /Handout Photo

Entitled "Hope – Portrait Concert of Guan Xia", it is the first special concert dedicated to Guan and his works.

"Yi", one of Guan's latest pieces for violin and orchestra performed on stage, with young Chinese violinist Zhu Dan leading the piece.

The 36-year-old musician has been widely recognized as one of the leading musicians of his generation on the international stage today.

Chinese composer Guan Xia /VCG Photo

Guan Xia himself said the violin piece "Yi" was inspired by his experiences as he traveled to southwest China's Yunnan Province some 30 years ago.

As a renowned Chinese composer, Guan Xia was recently included in the list of "One Hundred Outstanding Contemporary Artists" cited by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

Many of his works were also presented during the special concert including "Mulan Psalm" and "Farewell My Concubine."

The opera "Mulan Psalm" was the first Chinese opera ever staged at Mariinsky Theater in Moscow.

And symphonic fantasy "Farewell My Concubine" has been hailed as one of the "Oriental Classics" by world music critics, after it was presented at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City in 2006.