An orchestral classic

"Most of my relatives are painters, so I grew up painting. Whenever I go back to my hometown, Xi'an, I join them to paint," says Zhao Lin.

Zhao Lin's father is Chinese composer Zhao Jiping, who is known for producing the score of Zhang Yimou's 1991 film Raise the Red Lantern and director Chen Kaige's 1993 film Farewell My Concubine.

Zhao Lin began learning piano at the age of 5 and studied as a composer at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, where he graduated in 1996. He began his professional career as a composer for the China National Traditional Orchestra. Following in his father's footsteps, Zhao Lin has also produced film scores, including those for Together (2002), directed by Chen, and A Woman, a Gun and a Noodle Shop (2009), directed by Zhang.

In 2004, Zhao Lin also composed for the Silk Road Ensemble, a world-music initiative overseen by cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

Earlier this year, Zhao Lin served as the music director of the opening ceremony for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Zhao Lin notes that the reason why he chose On Pengli Lake Gazing at Lushan Mountain as the basis for the song in the closing chapter of the new musical piece was that "it's believed that Lushan Mountain and Poyang Lake are the main scenic focus of A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains". Poyang Lake was formerly called Pengli Lake. The two natural landmarks were described by Meng in his poem.

The idea of composing a music piece based on A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains started over a year ago when the League of China Orchestras held its annual forum in 2021. Twenty-three Chinese symphony orchestras commissioned the music piece together.

"It's a very exciting project. We have never had so many Chinese symphony orchestras work together to commission one music piece," says Yu Long, a renowned conductor and the president of the League of China Orchestras, which was launched in 2019 by the Chinese Musicians' Association.

"With a combination of traditional Chinese painting, music and poetry, the piece is dedicated to Chinese culture and Chinese people."

During the upcoming national tour, musicians from Hong Kong, Macao, Guangzhou and Shenzhen will perform together at two concerts to be held in Shenzhen on Aug 5 and in Guangzhou on Aug 10, commemorating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland.

On Sept 24, the piece will be performed at the capital's Poly Theater as the opening concert of the Beijing Music Festival, one of the largest classical music events in the country, which was founded by conductor Yu in 1998.