MACAU, December 2 - Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau and presented by the Macao Chinese Orchestra, the Concert of Celebration of the 25^th Anniversary of Macao’s Return to the Motherland – “Fiery Trees and Silver Flowers” was held yesterday (1 December) at Macao Cultural Centre Grand Auditorium. The Macao Chinese Orchestra collaborated with various Chinese and Portuguese musicians to present a distinctive musical feast commemorating Macao’s return to the motherland.

Prior to the concert, a toast ceremony was hosted by the Acting Vice President of Cultural Affairs Bureau, Choi Kin Long, the Chief of the Division of the Department of Publicity and Culture of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR, Wang Huijie; the Managing Director of Bank of China Macau Branch, Xu Zhiyu; the Member of the Board of Directors of the Macao Orchestra Company, Limited, Jimson Hoi; and the Music Director and Principal Conductor of Macao Chinese Orchestra, Zhang Lie.

The Macao Chinese Orchestra opened the concert with two musical pieces, namely Festive Overture and Red Litchis, followed by the exciting performance of Uproar in Heaven presented by the percussion ensemble “Eight Hammers”, consisting of Wang Jianhua, Li Congnong, Ma Li and Gao Chao, as well as the musical piece Gliterring Lights, Shining Flowers composed by Gu Guanren for the OCHM, a piece which exuded a lively atmosphere with its upbeat tempo. In addition, the Liuqin Principal of the OCHM, Wei Qing, joined hands with the Portuguese Fado guitarist Marta Pereira da Costa to present Macao Rhapsody, by Kuan Nai Chung, a work specially commissioned for this concert, revealing the unique charm of the fusion of Chinese and Portuguese music. Besides, nearly 120 students from the Macao Fukien School, Colegio de Santa Rosa de Lima - Chinese Section and Fu Luen School presented a series of pieces for chorus, including The Song of the Seven Sons, Jasmine, and My People, My Country. The contemporary erhu virtuoso Yu Hongmei also premiered her new work The Yimeng Landscapes in Macao. The OCHM’s closed the concert with the piece All Embracing Oceans, by Chen Si’ang, which brought it to a grand and successful conclusion.

The Macao Chinese Orchestra 2024-25 Concert Season is organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, co-ordinated by the Macao Orchestra Company, Limited, and supported by BOC Macau. For more performances of the Concert Season, the public can purchase tickets through the Macau Ticketing Network, with various discount packages available. 24-hour ticketing hotline: 2855 5555; online ticketing: www.macauticket.com.