The fourth annual Sino-Norwegian Music week will be held in Shanghai from October 10th to October 21st. Supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in cooperation with China Shanghai International Arts Festival and Concert Norway, three Norwegian bands will come to China to perform for Chinese schoolchildren during the festival.
During the ten day program, the three groups “Gumbo”, “Strings and Winds” and “Helene” are scheduled to perform at 27 different Shanghai primary schools. Two grand children’s concerts are also scheduled to be held at the Norwegian Expo pavilion on the 10th and 14th of October, both featuring a brass orchestra and more than 300 local schoolchildren.
Concert Norway’s children’s concerts have so far been a great hit among Chinese children. The musicians are known to encourage their young audience to participate actively during the show, by inviting the children to join in on the song and dance performance. The band members who toured Shanghai with Concert Norway last year said they had been met with lots of enthusiasm at all the schools they visited.
Concert Norway has a long tradition of hosting School concerts. In Norway, more than 600 000 school children get to experience performances by professional musicians every year. Since year 2000, a collaboration with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has given Concert Norway the chance to work with music even outside of Norway. Their aim is to create mutual understanding, knowledge and respect across cultural and geographical borders, by presenting good concert experiences to children and youth.
Since the first Sino-Norwegian music week was organized in 2007, Norwegian bands have visited 88 middle and primary schools in Shanghai. After three successful years of Sino – Norwegian Music Week, Concert Norway now wants to expand this unique project. They have therefore included schools in Guangzhou and Beijing the program for 2010.
