Beijing to hold Pop Music Festival in early May

By Li Shen: 0 Comment(s)Print E-mail China.org.cn, April 28, 2014

Chinese Flamenco dancers light up the press conference of 2014 Beijing International Pop Music Festival with a passionate performance Sunday in Beijing. [By Li Shen/China.aorg.cn]

The 2014 Beijing International Pop Music Festival will be held in Chaoyang Park during the May Day holiday (May 1-3), an organizer from the Chaoyang District government announced at a press conference on Sunday.

Themed "Music Craze," this year's festival will have 52 performances presented by some 40 music bands and dance troupes from 16 countries covering the musical genres of Rock and Roll, Jazz, percussion and ballad. The first Latin American and Caribbean Music Festival will also kick off as part of the festival.

On Friday (May 2) evening, 11 music bands and dance troupes from 10 Latin American and Caribbean countries will greet local music lovers with their dance and song at the "Night of Latin American and Caribbean Music." Among them, the steel drum band from Trinidad and Tobago, who performed for President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan during their visit to the country last June, will play some traditional Caribbean music and famous Chinese folk songs like "Jasmine Flower" and "Love Song of Kangding."

"We are glad to be part of the Pop Music Festival in Beijing," said Chandradath Singh, ambassador of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to China. "The cultural bond between China and Trinidad and Tobago is strong and historical. And the teenagers in the band who participate in the performance will help deepen the people-to-people ties between the two countries," Singh added.

"The music festival admission is free. Visitors only pay 5 yuan (US$0.8 ) on a park ticket and can enjoy the music for the whole day," said Xu Wei, director of Chaoyang District Cultureal Center at the press conference. During the three-day festival, performances will be staged at two venues -- the Fireworks Square and the South Fountain Square -- from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. The Fireworks Square will host foreign bands and dancers, while the other will form the stage for Chinese singers and bands. "We hope the festival can become a public one, not just one for musicians or music lovers."

The Gandhi, a 20-year-old prestigious rock band from Costa Rica and Chinese Flamenco dancers lit up the press conference with a passionate performance.

The Beijing International Pop Music Festival has been hosted nine times since 2004. It now has become a cultural signature of the capital city with its characteristics of non-profit, trend, diversity and internationalization.

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