As the golden season of autumn arrives, the Nanjing Forest Music Festival gracefully returns, bringing a feast for the senses to the city’s residents. On September 13th, 2024, the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum Music Stage will transform a sacred haven for music lovers, where the heart of the city meets the soul of the arts. A captivating journey of music and mutual devotion between the artists and their audience is about to unfold.

 

 

 

Notes dance in the air, resonating with the audience’s heartbeat. This direct and intense emotional exchange is something that no recording or livestream can replicate. In the presence of live music, one encounters the purest essence of sound, with each note awakening the deepest, most sincere emotions within.

 

 

Famed musician Bian Liunian, who hails from Nanjing, spoke fondly of his hometown’s forest music festival. He said, “We have seen the world, and the world has also seen us.”

 

Live music, on a moonlit night, creates a powerful emotional resonance. Joy, sorrow, nostalgia, and longing all flow freely through the music. With the starry sky as the backdrop and the songs of birds as companions, sharing the experience with love, one becomes deeply immersed in the music stage. This exchange and resonance of emotions allow us to feel each other’s warmth and support.

 

As Professor Shen Cheng, violinist at the Nanjing University of the Arts, described, “When you are at the live concert, the sensation of being surrounded by music is unparalleled. Music comes from all directions, and each note strikes directly at your heart. In such an environment, you’ll find yourself unknowingly carried away by the music, your mood rising and falling with the melody, and your emotions intertwining with those of the orchestra and audience around you.” This experience is something that no digital device can ever reproduce.

 

 

When the music starts, all worries and stresses melt away, leaving only pure sound and immediate joy. This feeling imprints itself deep in your soul, creating unforgettable memories that last a lifetime.

 

 

The program for this autumn’s Forest Music Festival is irresistibly enchanting. 

 

In Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, the sea breeze whispers, and the waves surge, with melody and harmony interwoven. The sounds of nature leap to your ears, and your soul rises and falls as though you are personally experiencing the grandeur and subtlety of Scotland’s enchanting landscapes. This overture is not merely a musical journey, but a profound cleansing of the spirit.

 

Beneath the vast European sky lies a poignant legend: At the final moments of life, the swan sings a sorrowful yet hauntingly beautiful song to bid farewell to life. Such a melody is not only a painful goodbye, but also cherished reminiscence of the past. Throughout history, many artists’ final creations have been labeled as their Swan Song.

 

The final performance of the Forest Music Festival, Turandot, stands as a testament to Puccini’s life’s work, eloquently expressing the essence of life, art, and love. Though time may pass, music remains eternal. The scent of jasmine subtly lingers, as if carried from the mystical East, intertwining with classical melodies into a cross-cultural love song. It leaves a lasting impression on the audience, evoking a resonance between Eastern and Western civilizations.

 

 

Classical music, a timeless treasure that transcends the ages, offers a refuge of peace amid the chaos of the world, allowing us to rediscover the elegance and depth of life. Dancing with it is like conversing with time itself, embarking on a journey to explore the true self. Its allure has the power to reshape our perspective on life, guiding us to find inner peace and authenticity amid the clamor.

 

The festival opens with a powerful symphony inspired by Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra, guiding the audience into a realm of profound philosophical contemplation. Following this, Dvořák’s Silent Woods cello concerto gently flows, its delicate melodies like fine silk, guiding us through the dense forest of the soul, toward the inner tranquility and nostalgia. Each tone lingers as a timeless echo of past emotions and memories.

 

 

In the sea of music, each melody is a poetic expression of emotion, and Tchaikovsky’s Nocturne is a classic filled with poignant reflection. The composition’s layers unfold like majestic mountain ranges, drawing listeners into a world brimming with anticipation. Each rise and fall reflects the soul’s struggles and yearnings, culminating in a lengthy, lingering chant that evokes a sense of nostalgic tenderness. Tchaikovsky’s Nocturne can be seen not just as a piece of music, but as a philosophy of life, resonating with the human experience of suffering and emotion.

 

Faith, whether it is a belief in love or an understanding of life, makes a musician stand out from the rest. Much like in Swan Lake, where the protagonist Odette’s fate and struggle are the perfect fusion of belief and inner emotion, this pure and profound love is not just a personal feeling but a passion for life and the boundless pursuit of beauty. The dancer’s spins and leaps convey not just technical perfection but also the soul’s yearning for freedom, love, and defiance of adversity. In that moment, we may not just be watching a performance, but listening to the voice of a soul.

 

The Nanjing Forest Music Festival is no longer merely a river of notes and melodies, but a grand stage where diverse cultures converge. It carries not just music, but also the intersection of art, fashion, thought, and lifestyle.

 

On September 16th, there will be a special Hungarian concert to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Hungary. This summer, renowned writer Ye Zhaoyan visited Hungary, where he mentioned that many Chinese readers are familiar with the Hungarian poet Sándor Petőfi’s poem Liberty and Love. For a writer like Ye, who has been writing for 40 years, the love, life, and freedom mentioned in the poem have always been a significant source of inspiration in his writing.

 

 

The forest music festival represents an intoxicating vision, one that cannot be equated with light and elegant background music or social moments adorned for the public. As a classical music concert, it possesses a unique sense of ritual, delivering a profound impact that resonates deeply and becomes unforgettable. Simultaneously, it instills in us a sense of belonging, with diverse musical languages weaving together into a beautiful tapestry that sketches contemporary cultural attitudes and emotional pursuits. This is articulated by Xia Wenbiao, Associate Director of the Nanjing Cultural Center, who has dedicated many years to the public cultural sector.

 

The forest music festival is not only a celebration of musical notes but also a chant of the city’s soul and an important link in cultural dissemination. In a relaxed and joyful atmosphere, it allows people to feel the profound cultural power conveyed by music. Zhang Hui, the founder of Wei Kan Cultural and Artistic Institution, which has long been dedicated to China-European music exchanges, believes that the forest music festival is not just a feast of music but also a form of cultural exploration.

 

 

The ancient city of Nanjing, with its rolling green hills and flowing waters, nurtures a diverse cultural and uniquely profound musical atmosphere through the Forest Music Festival. Here, we travel through the realms of art, experiencing the unique aura of each artistic style. Every movement of music unfolds like a vast and dramatic landscape, revealing the brilliant tapestry of human culture. Each note seems to tell an immortal story, recounting past glories and dreams carried forward. These melodies are not merely a weave of sounds but form a dreamlike musical Great Wall—ancient yet new, majestic yet resilient. The audience is no longer a passive receiver, but an active participant—releasing themselves in the waves of sound, finding resonance within melodies, strolling through corridors of history, and touching the distant memories they evoke. The interaction with music is vivid and real, allowing it to seep into every corner of life. The forest music festival is thus not only a feast for the senses of high art but also an extraordinary cultural exploration and a vivid, enriching musical study journey.