The New Year concert to be staged at Xinghai Concert Hall in Guangzhou on Dec 31 stands out with its focus on Chinese folk music. It gathers Li Zhaofang, a master at gaohu, or high-pitched erhu, a musical instrument often used in Cantonese music, and Ma Changsheng, a guqin artist, who plucks the seven-string Chinese instrument of the zither family. The concert includes percussion music, Cantonese tunes and melodies from Dunhuang in the desert region of Northwest China.

8 pm, Dec 31. Symphony Hall, Xinghai Concert Hall, 33 Qingbo Lu, Ersha Island, Yuexiu district, Guangzhou. 020-8735-2222.