MLCCC Mid-Autumn Chinese Music Festival

For the first time on the Main Line, a traditional Chinese music concert was held at Great Valley High School in Malvern on Oct 5, 2013.

Hosted by the Main Line Chinese Culture Center, the concert celebrated the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, which honors kinship, friendship, and the bright moonlight in a serene night.

A variety of the most acclaimed works of Chinese music and a dozen well-known Chinese instruments were featured, including the zither, the erhu (2-stringed "violin"), the sheng which has over 3,000 years of history, and many other instruments. A cultural slide show on a giant screen was paired perfectly with each musical piece, retelling the story behind the melodies, whether it is the mythical flight of the lady to the moon, or lush bamboos swaying in a moonlit night. Additionally, members of the prestigious Philadelphia Sinfonia orchestra played western musical instruments such as violins, viola, and cello, which further accentuated the melodies.

Before the concert, there were many activities as well, including demonstrations and displays of numerous instruments, tastings of moon cakes, and spreads of cultural merchandise.

Hundreds of people of all ages came and enjoyed the event! Most of them were from non-Chinese-heritage families. They learned about the instruments, tasted a moon cake for the first time in their life, or twirled a dancing handkerchief. As one non-Chinese-heritage attendee commented, the concert brought back vivid and fond memories of her times working in China.