Wu Promotion's 15th "Great Chinese New Year Concert" tour presented the Chinese Traditional Orchestra of Inner Mongolia.

Musicians from Inner Mongolia are making curtain calls

Celebrating the arrival of the Year of the Dragon, Wu Promotion's 15th "Great Chinese New Year Concert" tour presented the Chinese Traditional Orchestra of Inner Mongolia, which toured across the Middle East and Europe from January 22nd to February 2nd, 2012. The musical performances of the Chinese artists were received enthusiastically by the local audience of this year's destinations, which included Oman (Muscat), Switzerland (Lucerne), Italy (Bologna) and Germany (Bremen).

The premiere of the Grand Chinese New Year Concert at the Royal Opera House Muscat, Oman

The widely unknown musical traditions of the Mongolian people were met with excitement by local audiences. The concert's first play, the New Year's Overture expressed the Chinese New Year's festive, family atmosphere, accompanied by the exotic sounds of the Chinese Suona. Afterwards the Mongolian singer Tu Ya performed the musical piece Brown Eagle, a traditional Mongolian Long-Song (urtyn duu). The concert continued on with more traditional and modern works, like the New Shepherd's Song, Little Sisters of the Grassland, Full-Steam Ahead, Everlasting Joy, Westwards, Gada Meiren, etc., which enchanted the audience with their traditional instruments and musical techniques like the Morin Khuur (Horse-head fiddle) and Throat Singing (Overtone Singing). Finally, after multiple standing ovations, the orchestra ended its glorious concert with the encore of the famous Mongolian Toast Song.

The concert in Muscat, Oman on January 23rd represented the tour's first performance in a Middle East country. To celebrate this special occasion, lots of important guests, like members of the royal family, government ministers, the Chinese Ambassador, etc. attended the concert. On January 27th the Grand Chinese New Year Concert held a performance at the KKL concert hall in Lucerne, which was fully booked and able to build on previous year's success. The orchestra was welcomed by the Chinese Ambassador Wu Ken. The premiere of the Chinese New Year Concert in Bologna, Italy was greatly rewarded by the audience, demanding five encores! Originally planned to end around 11pm, the concert continued until after midnight. Like the past years, the audience in Bremen was the most enthusiastic one. Holding the Chinese flag, people waved it in accordance with the music's rhythm. Long after the performance had ended, many parts of the audience were still unwilling to leave, shaking the conductor's hand and thanking everyone for a wonderful performance.