On the evening of January 7, the opening concert of the 21st "Meet in Beijing" International Arts Festival was held at the Beijing Concert Hall.

The evening's performances closely followed the theme of "Meeting in the Winter Olympics and forging ahead on a new journey". After the opening song "Olympic Horn", the second half of the brass quintet "Frozen" and "Skating Waltz" evoked the atmosphere of the Winter Olympics for the audience.

Conductor Chen Xieyang said that the selection of the repertoire for this concert emphasized sports-related themes and created an atmosphere of excitement for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

Pipa player Zhao Cong and the China Symphony Orchestra's "Blooming" was full of eastern agility and grace.

Zhongruan performer Feng Mantian and suona performer Niu Jiandang joined hands with the China Symphony Orchestra to perform "Xintianyou Caprice", which transported the audience to the Loess Plateau. The first half of this work is deep, the second half is more lively.

This year's "Meet in Beijing" International Art Festival tried a new online and offline model for the first time.

Li Jinsheng, Secretary of the Party Committee of China Arts and Entertainment Group Ltd. (CAEG) said that focusing on the theme of "Passionate Ice and Snow, Cloud Literature and Classical Centuries", this year's arts festival dedicated 42 performances from 24 countries to the audience, including 31 online performances and 11 in-theater performances. At the same time, six art exhibitions, Winter Olympics-themed cultural events, thematic forums and performance promotion meetings will be held.

Sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the State Administration of Radio and Television, the Beijing Municipal People's Government, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics Organizing Committee, and hosted by CAEG and the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, the International Arts Festival has been held in Beijing annually for 20 sessions since 2000.

More than 30,000 artists from more than 120 countries and regions have staged performances in Beijing, attracting more than 4.3 million audience members and becoming an important platform for promoting cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries.