Solid foundation for progress built on centuries-old heritage, Wang Jinhui reports.
Leveraging its diverse heritage and extensive foundation in folk music, Wuxi in Jiangsu province embraces music culture as a vital indicator of urban development in its aim to create a world-renowned city with regional characteristics, global perspective and international influence.
Wuxi encompasses the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, a UNESCO World Heritage site, 465 national-level cultural heritage sites, and such intangible cultural heritage items as Huishan clay figurines, bamboo carvings, delicate embroidery and Xiju Opera. It is home to Taihu Lake and popular scenic spots Yuantouzhu, the Lingshan Grand Buddha and Huishan ancient town.
From Ji Zha, a music appreciator and critic in the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), to Shen Zun, who composed classical Chinese qin music in the Song Dynasty (960-1279), and from the 400-year-old Tianyun Society (the oldest surviving Kunqu association in China), to Hua Qiuping, who wrote the first pipa (four-stringed Chinese lute) score during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Wuxi boasts abundant musical traditions that cement its status as the birthplace of Wu culture.
Distinctive path
The city has prioritized the diversity and innovation of its music culture in recent years. By establishing professional orchestras, radio outlets, promotion centers and talent pools, Wuxi has formed a unique music development pattern with government support, institutional participation, joint construction by universities and industry association involvement.
The Wuxi Music Capital Promotion Center brings together experts from the cultural and tourism industries in a wide range of activities, including erhu international exchange events, while continuously enhancing the city's musical connotations. Furthermore, the Wuxi Chinese Orchestra and the Wuxi Symphony Orchestra have launched a series of activities to popularize music culture, including hosting public concerts and lectures, performing arts at grassroots levels, and engaging with schools.
The Wuxi Chinese Orchestra has explored national music with Jiangnan characteristics and presented large-scale original concerts, while the Wuxi Symphony Orchestra's original symphonic Wuxi Overture was performed at the 2024 New Year concert in the city. The symphony orchestra collaborated with the Macao Cultural Promotion Association to stage a show marking the 25th anniversary of Macao's return to China.
In the education field, several universities in Wuxi offer music-related majors, with Jiangnan University establishing a key direction with music education and performance as its dominant feature. The music and dance disciplines have significant influence, both within the province and nationwide. In 2025, the university will recruit its first contingent of music master's students, providing a new opportunity for the cultivation of music professionals and the development of arts education.
In recent years, Wuxi has also issued the Taihu Talent Plan to introduce musical experts. To date, the city has attracted hundreds of highend talents, including influential musicians such as Deng Jiandong, Sun Peng and Lin Daye.
Currently, Wuxi has over 500 music and art folk groups, and more than 80 school music clubs. It is home to a number of outstanding folk music organizations. The Wuxi Musicians Association, established over 30 years ago, has developed over 1,100 members while organizing more than 30 music sharing and exchange events annually. The Wuxi Dramatists Association, founded in 1993, currently has over 170 members and more than 1,000 secondary association members. The city has also built national orchestras and symphony orchestras for young people, demonstrating the strength and style of the new generation.
Growth through creativity
Wuxi regards high-tech and cultural industries as accelerators for urban transformation and views creativity in the music and humanities fields as a key element in achieving sustainable development.
Wuxi Studios has gathered over 800 domestic and foreign film and cultural companies, with the annual output value jumping from an initial 180 million yuan ($24.73 million) in 2013 to 6 billion yuan in 2019. More than 800 film and cultural companies, including visual effects firms Morevfx and Base Media have settled there, producing a number of excellent films such as The Captain and The Wandering Earth II.
Meanwhile, Erhu Industrial Park in Meicun of Wuxi's Xinwu district has 20 production and supporting enterprises that produce nearly 50,000 items annually. The city also houses a large number of high-end music-related enterprises. Specifically, Wuxi-based Sino-US joint venture Jiangyin Goldencup Angels Musical Instruments produces 25,000 accordions annually, with a domestic market coverage rate of 43 percent and an annual sales revenue of 50 million yuan, leading the accordion industry in China.
Jiangsu Jiangyin Bailing National Musical Instrument Factory, established in 1997, is the earliest and largest professional manufacturer of rosewood flutes in China dedicated to the research and development of national musical instruments. After more than a decade of R&D, the company pioneered rosewood flutes and also produces xiao among other ethnic wind instruments.
In the first half of this year, Wuxi hosted over 20 music festivals and celebrity concerts, with Wuxi Grand Theatre presenting 140 quality performances. Events such as the Wuxi Taihu music festival and the Taihu beer music festival are highly popular, driving the city's nighttime cultural and tourism consumption to approximately 1.54 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 19.8 percent.
Contact the writer at wangjinhui@chinadaily.com.cn
