How the great composer inspired generations of Chinese through war, revolution, and hardship.
Co-presented with China Institute in NYC, this is part one of a two-part series.
Join Sheila Melvin and Jindong Cai as they discuss their book, Beethoven in China. The two authors will focus on the historical background and the most influential people who were responsible for exploring Beethoven and his music in China, and how Beethoven became a symbol and an inspiration to many Chinese of triumph over great difficulties.
This free webinar is open to the public via the China Institute online platform.
Part Two: “Beethoven in Beijing” — a film preview and conversation, will take place on July 28 at 7pm. Registration and more information HERE.
Participants
A conductor, author, and educator with a distinguished career, Jindong Cai is the director of the US-China Music Institute, professor of music and arts at Bard College, and artistic director of Music at China Institute . Prior to joining Bard, he was a professor of performance at Stanford University. Over the 30 years of his career in the United States, Cai has established himself as an active and dynamic conductor, scholar of Western classical music in China, and leading advocate of music from across Asia.
He has conducted most of the top orchestras in China, as well as orchestras across North America, and has written extensively on music and the performing arts in China. Together with his wife Sheila Melvin, Cai has coauthored Rhapsody in Red: How Western Classical Music Became Chinese as well as Beethoven in China: How the Great Composer Became an Icon in the People’s Republic.
Sheila Melvin is a writer and consultant who focuses on both culture and business. She is the co-author, with her husband, the conductor Jindong Cai, of Rhapsody in Red: How Western Classical Music Became Chinese, which was short-listed for the Saroyan Prize in 2005; Beethoven in China: How the Great Composer Became an Icon in the People’s Republic (Penguin, 2016), which was featured on NPR’s “All Things Considered;” and The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra: Music Connecting Worlds (Sanlian, 2019 limited edition). Ms. Melvin’s writing on the arts in Asia, primarily China, has been published in The International Herald Tribune, The Wall Street Journal, The Asian Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, The San Jose Mercury News, The Wilson Quarterly, and other publications.
Ms. Melvin is also a writer for the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. Earlier in her career, she spent many years working for the US-China Business Council and established the Council’s first office in Shanghai. While there, she was elected to the Board of Governors of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai and addressed many international conferences, including the Fortune Global Forum. She is the author of The Little Red Book of China Business (Sourcebooks, 2008).
About this series
The US-China Music Institute of the Bard College Conservatory of Music and China Institute in New York City are presenting the Beethoven in China online series of webinar/panel discussions to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth. Author Sheila Melvin and conductor Jindong Cai published the definitive book on the subject and will be hosting this series.
Music at China Institute 华美音乐
Music at China Institute 华美音乐 offers talks, performances, and Chinese music demonstrations, as well as Chinese music classes for children and adults. The program was launched in partnership with the US-China Music Institute of the Bard College Conservatory of Music. Jindong Cai, a conductor with a distinguished career in the U.S. and China and the founding director of the U.S.-China Music Institute, is the Artistic Director.
Through music, we find new opportunities to reflect on our shared humanity and honor the creativity that inspires us all. Music at China Institute 华美音乐 aims to be such a bridge, connecting Americans and Chinese at a time when we need it the most.