Prestigious music college to promote classics online

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In order to help promote classical music, the first music institution of higher education in China has decided to offer their works online, for free.

Shanghai Conservatory of Music (SHCM) will set up a special channel on Qianqian Music, which was rebranded from the leading music-sharing platform Baidu Music, according to an agreement reached on Monday.

As China has become the current world leader in piano manufacturing, classical music has made its way into concert halls in most major cities in the country.

An orchestra from SHCM perform for audiences in Hangzhou City of east China's Zhejiang Province on May 13, 2017. /VCG Photo

The SHCM plans to bring musical products, performances and lectures to users of Qianqian Music, which belongs to Chinese search giant Baidu. The service is due to run till September.

Amateurs are able to enjoy traditional Chinese music on the channel, notably including music rewritten based on the monumental works of Tang Xianzu, who was a Chinese playwright of the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644).

There are also western music choices offered – from Paganini Caprice to Bach Sinfonia.

“We want to catch up with the era full of information, AI and innovative arts,” said SHCM principal Lin Zaiyong. “We are not going to limit ourselves.”

It is considered as a breakthrough for the music industry in China. “This is the first time for the SHCM to authorize online platforms with the copyright of their products,” said Qianqian Music manager Wang Lei.

SHCM, founded on November 27 in 1927, is taken as "the cradle of musicians" in China. /VCG Photo

The 91-year-old college will also establish an intellectual property database on the music platform.

“We have to seek for authorization from the composers and music companies,” said An Dong, from SHCM authority and one of the cooperation program's initiators. “It takes much longer than we originally thought.”

Last September, the copyright regulator in China informed a group of over 20 Chinese and foreign music organizations that they must stick to domestic market rules and international practices to widen licensing and spread online music, according to Xinhua.