During his enthralling lifetime, characterized by fascinating ups and downs, Verdi created precious musical gems for mankind to enjoy. The composer’s innate acuity and steadfastness led him to find a resonance in the works of Shakespeare, Hugo, Alexandre Dumas the Younger, Byron, Schiller and numerous other literary grandmasters, whose stories – brimming with cultural appeal and freespiritedness – he rendered using the even more emotion-driven language of music. Verdi’s operas are a perfect combination of language and music, an apt display of the noblest emotions and loftiest spirit of mankind. Several signature compositions of Verdi’s repertoire were selected for this particular concert: overtures taken from Nabucco, La Traviata, I vespri siciliani, Aida and Rigoletto, along with a wonderful selection of arias and cantatas were interpreted by the Italian conductor Gianluca Marciano and performed with great conviction by internationally renowned singers from both China and abroad, including sopranos Eglise Gutiérrez, Zhang Liping and He Hui, mezzo-soprano Liang Ning, tenors Wei Song and Warren Mok, baritone Liao Changyong and bass Luan Feng, as a way to pay homage to the master himself. The audience members were awestruck by these delightful and beguiling melodies resounding in the Winland atrium, and were swept away by the intense fervor emitted by Verdi’s music, which transcends nationality or country, age or time period, religion or any specific set of circumstances. It’s as if the music allows us to experience the romantic overtones and intense emotions of life in all its glory, resulting from this world-class composer having intricately intertwined his own life with the mass movement of a nation.

Of all things ‘Made in Italy’, one aspect currently gaining mass appeal in China is that of traditional opera. Italy has acquired fame the world over as the primary guardian and gatekeeper of traditional opera.

Traditionally and historically speaking, opera has always belonged to the ‘ancient European continent’. Over the last ten years, however, China has embraced art from all over the globe, thus carving out an important space for European classical music to thrive in. At present, opera is also undergoing rapid development in China. Italy and China have jointly initiated the ‘Programma Turandot’, which is centered around art, music and design. The program has enabled many Chinese students to enroll in Italian higher learning institutions for art and music, and has provided young Chinese singers with the opportunity to go to Italy to study Verdi, Rossini and Puccini, allowing them to return to China later in life and be involved in art-related event planning or go into teaching. Our thanks go out to the booming country of China, one of the countries with the most musical talent in the world: China boasts 30 million piano students, 18 million violin students, and a plethora of opera singers and aficionados who pro-actively endeavor to popularize opera.

My esteemed friend Mr. Adam Yu is a Renaissance man with a noble heart and a profound love of Italian culture and the operatic tradition. For a considerable period of time now, he has had stable and amicable relations with the country of Italy. Mr. Yu has gone to great lengths to promote, support and provide financial aid to Italian opera, as well as propagate the spirit of Italian opera. Thanks to his zeal, enthusiasm and imagination, the opera Turandot by the renowned Italian composer Puccini could be interpreted through the eyes of a Chinese contemporary artist as the subject material for a permanent mural. On the evening of April 25, 2008, which coincided with the 82-year anniversary of the premiere of Turandot as well as Puccini’s 150^th birthday, the monumental mural Nessun Dorma was unveiled to the dulcet tones of the great Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. Just like the opera’s magnificent, gaudy arias, this gigantic mural reveals utterly gorgeous, ravishing colors. Staged against the backdrop of the mural’s sublime radiance, Mr. Yu’s Christmas Gala Concert has become a cultural extravaganza aimed at carrying forward Italy and its operatic tradition in Beijing. Indubitably, this has been beneficial for the vigorous development of both countries’bilateral relations, as well as the promotion of the long-standing and intimate cultural exchange and friendship between China and Italy.

Of all Italian composers of the 19^th century, Giuseppe Verdi boasted the most pronounced rustic flavor. An unsophisticated and upright man, Verdi was known for his great integrity as well as his rare intellectual sincerity and patriotic fervor. He vividly evoked the spirit of the Italian people, their country and the Renaissance period. Without a doubt, Verdi is one of the composers held in the highest esteem by the Chinese people. His appeal has remained unchanged: to this day, his oeuvre, genius expression, exuberant talent and creative wherewithal are still performed with brio and passed on with the same unwavering enthusiasm and passion. Despite having crossed national boundaries, Verdi’s oeuvre has always retained its lofty Italian pride.

After a year of meticulous preparation, on December 5, 2009 the Christmas Gala Concert allowed us to once again dip into the brilliance of the great composer Giuseppe Verdi. Owing to his genuine passion and restrained dignity, Giuseppe Verdi will yet again be proven to be one of the greatest symbols of Italian temperament to have walked the globe.

The musical notation of the great Italian opera is symbolic of Italian culture and tradition. It is a carrier of the mutual understanding between the two far-removed cultures of China and Italy, and of the shared emotional resonance of both countries’ people. Opera music has become a worthy conduit for gaining deeper understanding of the Italian people and their temperament, and for further developing the special friendship between China and Italy. On the ancient European continent, opera is still loved primarily by adult audiences, whereas in today’s China opera is still ‘budding’, as are its audiences. Chinese opera listeners are curiosity-driven and passionate, and they appreciate classical opera hailing from the ancient European continent, particularly Italy. It is only fitting for me to commend Mr. Adam Yu for his thorough understanding of how to latch onto said curiosity and enthusiasm, to not only satisfy the wish of Chinese audiences to understand opera better, but also to propagate this crucial formative part of Italian culture in China.

It’s plain to see what a driving force our friend Adam Yu has been and what contributions he has made for the exchange and spread of Chinese and Italian culture. On June 2, 2009, marking the 63^rd celebration of Italy’s Festa della Repubblica (Republic Day), the former President of the Republic of Italy Giorgio Napolitano conferred upon Mr. Adam Yu the special title of L'Ordine della Stella della Solidarietà Italiana (The Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity), to honor him for sharing his innermost feelings with us.