Beijing's Autumn Rite of Great Music

Every October, for twenty-eight editions now, Beijing has celebrated its autumn musical rite: some thirty evenings of opera, symphonic music, chamber works and recitals that China's Ministry of Culture counts among the world's most renowned musical events. The Beijing Music Festival, set to reach its twenty-ninth edition in 2026, is the country's most prestigious classical music gathering. Its roll of honour includes Barenboim, Rattle, Muti, Gergiev, Argerich, Pollini, Yo-Yo Ma and José Carreras, alongside institutions such as the Berlin Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic and the Salzburg Easter Festival. The latest edition brought together more than 700 musicians from 26 countries, opening at the National Centre for the Performing Arts with the China Philharmonic conducted by Long Yu, president of the festival's artistic committee, and featured Mikhail Pletnev's Asian debut and the Chinese premiere of the fully staged Wozzeck. The programme for the new edition will be announced in the coming weeks: the rendezvous, as ever, is in Beijing's golden autumn.