Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra triumphantly conclude their grand tour of China

The Mariinsky Theatre’s large-scale tour of China came to a triumphant close today in Xi’an with a concert by the Mariinsky Orchestra under the baton of Valery Gergiev. From 12 to 27 October the acclaimed maestro and orchestra performed in Beijing and Shanghai and, for the first time, in Wuhan, Kunming, Changsha and Xi’an, giving a total of fourteen performances.

The tour’s symphonic programme opened on 12 October at the Shanghai Oriental Art Centre, where a world record was set: Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra performed all nine Mahler symphonies within five days, marking the 165^th anniversary of the composer’s birth.

Another milestone of the tour was the inauguration of the new Beijing Centre for Performing Arts (BCPA), one of the capital’s most prestigious new venues, whose opening concerts were conducted by Valery Gergiev. On 25 and 26 October the stage hosted a Chinese production of Otello, while on 21 October the maestro led the China NCPA Orchestra.

In Wuhan, Kunming, Changsha and Xi’an Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra presented vibrant programmes featuring Musorgsky’s Dawn on the Moscow River and Pictures at an Exhibition, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade and Ravel’s Boléro. In Beijing, joined by the Chorus of the Primorsky Stage of the Mariinsky Theatre, they performed Shostakovich’s Festive Overture and the Third symphonies by Prokofiev and Mahler.

A concert performance of Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades was also given at Beijing’s National Centre for the Performing Arts, featuring Oleg Dolgov, Irina Churilova, Zinaida Tsarenko, Anna Kiknadze, Pavel Yankovsky and Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar in the leading roles, together with soloists and the Chorus of the Primorsky Stage of the Mariinsky Theatre and a Chinese children’s choir. Valery Gergiev conducted the Mariinsky Orchestra.

The Mariinsky Theatre’s extensive China tour by its ballet company and symphony orchestra took place from 11 to 27 October. The ballet programme, which ran during 11–23 October in Beijing, Nanjing and Shanghai, featured Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and Adam’s Le Corsaire. The vocal-symphonic leg of the tour, conducted by Valery Gergiev, was presented from 12 to 27 October across Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Kunming, Changsha and Xi’an.