U Music! concert to present Liu Sola

Renowned writer and avant-garde musician Liu Sola will perform with the EOS Orchestra of the Central Conservatory of Music, in a crossover concert. "I will try to lead the classically-trained players of the EOS orchestra to play music in a way that is different from what they have learned in school," Liu says.

In Square, one of her compositions to be played at the concert, Liu will make the members of EOS not only play their instruments, but also march.

"I hope this concert will show people that music can be less rigid and more open," she says.

The concert will also premiere A Chicken at the Country Fair (orchestra version), a work commissioned by EOS that features Liu's vocal performance.

The players will have room to improvise in this work, according to Hu Yongyan, artistic director of EOS Orchestra, who will conduct the concert.

Hu founded the EOS Orchestra in 2006 with top graduates from China's music conservatories, to help produce future members of symphony orchestras in China and abroad by focusing on group development.

The concert with Liu is part of the U Music! series which is targeted at university students. Two previous concerts of the series, one in collaboration with Peking Opera master Mei Baojiu and another one that blended symphonic and film music, won warm applause from audiences.

Yanni returns after 14 years with four-city tour

Greek musician Yanni returns to the country with a four-city tour in early October, 14 years after his concert at the Forbidden City in 1997.

Yanni will perform at the Master Card Center of Beijing on Oct 1 and 2, Shanghai Grand Stage on Oct 4, Haixinsha Park of Guangzhou on Oct 7, and Sichuan Provincial Gymnasium in Chengdu on Oct 10.

Yanni has performed live in front of more than 2 million people in more than 20 countries around the world. His albums have sold more than 20 million copies.

For the China concerts, Yanni will play works from his latest 2011 album Truth of Touch, as well as his classics.

You will be enthralled, says Cameron of his Sanctum

James Cameron has written a letter to Chinese audiences to draw them into theaters to see his latest film, Sanctum.

"Sanctum is a 3D adventure that takes you to the depths of the Earth, where a group of explorers is trapped deep underground when a violent storm floods their cave," he says in an open letter provided by Edko Films, the film's mainland distributor.

"We filmed Sanctum using the same Fusion 3D cameras that were used on Avatar. You will feel the cave surrounding you, and be pulled into the story along with the characters."

The film was released at mainland theaters on Sept 9.

Cameron's Avatar raked in 1.3 billion yuan ($204 million) in China and is the highest-grossing film in the country.

Paintings and calligraphy on display at group show

A group exhibition of young calligraphers and painters from the Chinese National Academy of Arts is being held at the Museum of Chinese Women and Children, in Beijing.

The exhibition presents both traditional Chinese paintings and Western oils, besides Chinese calligraphy.

The 20 participant artists come from various organizations attached to the Chinese National Academy of Arts, including Chinese Painting Academy, Chinese Calligraphy Academy, and Research Center of Contemporary Arts Creation.

The exhibition is the fourth of a series of exhibitions held by the national academy this year. It will close on Sept 17.

Soprano to present Chinese and Western classics

One of China's best-known sopranos Zhang Liping will hold a recital at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing on Sept 28.

The first half of the concert will be dedicated to Chinese music, with Zhang performing classic Chinese songs such as I Live in the Origin of the Yangtze River and That Is Me, as well as pop songs such as Olive Tree. In the second half, she will perform some of the best-loved Western arias.

Dean of the voice and opera department of Central Conservatory of music, Zhang has performed with many of the world's leading opera houses, including the Royal Opera Covent Garden, Deutsche Oper Berlin and Metropolitan Opera.