EAST AND WEST: Chinese New Year Concert at Holy Trinity

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President Xi’s Visit Inspires Chinese New Year Concert

The recent visit of President Xi, and the consequent interest in all things Chinese, has inspired Holy Trinity Church to acknowledge the onset of the Chinese New Year by presenting a New Year Concert featuring two talented Chinese musicians.

The concert, entitled, East and West will feature Chinese pipa player, Zhou Fen and violin player, Guo Xinyu. The two will present a program of traditional Chinese and Western music at a concert to be held at Holy Trinity Church on Friday 13 February at 7.00 pm.

‘Our society is now one that is truly multicultural’, said Priest-in-Charge, Warwick Cuthbertson. ‘It is a privilege for us to be able to acknowledge the richness of our cultural fabric by presenting this concert which celebrates, not only the onset of the Chinese New Year, but also interweaves music from two great cultural streams’. ‘This is an opportunity for the community to join with us and celebrate our cultural diversity in an enjoyable evening of music’, he said.

Both performers came to Tasmania to undertake degree studies at the University of Tasmania – Fen to undertake postgraduate studies in Education, and Xinyu to undertake postgraduate violin studies at the Conservatorium of Music under TSO Concertmaster, Jun Ma. 

Fen studied the pipa, or Chinese lute, in her home town of Changsha under a master from the Conservatorium of Music in Tianjin. She is considered one of the foremost exponents of the instrument in Australia and has been invited to perform in venues throughout Australia including the Australian War Memorial. 

Although Xinyu’s first degree is in telecommunications engineering, violin has always been her first love! She holds a Master of Music degree from the University of Tasmania and undertook further studies in London to improve her bowing technique. She now teaches violin professionally, and plays on a casual basis with the TSO. Xinyu is also a brilliant cook and caters for dinner parties when not absorbed by her music. 

The concert will be followed by supper in the Narthex of the church. Entry is by donation and the proceeds will by applied to restoration work that needs to be carried out on the building.

For further information contact please contact Greg Parkinson (Churchwarden) on 0409 700112 or: tas0946@bigpond.com

PONRABBEL is pleased to support this event given the Chinese community's contribution to the cultural life Tamar/Esk  over a considerable time. Furthermore, this concert it is hoped will be the first of many performance events at Holly Trinity and other venues in the region. PONNRABBEL is especial interested in exploring new, collaborative and/or cooperative ways to present experimental and cultural diverse events in the Tamar/Esk region. Please contact us if you have something in mind.