WASHINGTON—Matthew Woods, a freelance musician, was delighted and filled with hope after watching Shen Yun Performing Arts at The Kennedy Center Opera House on Jan. 7. “Beautiful things are happening. We’re moving forward in a positive way and [Shen Yun] is playing a big role in that!” Mr. Woods said.
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts is a premier classical Chinese dance and music company. Through classical Chinese dance and live orchestra accompaniment, Shen Yun is reviving 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture. The Shen Yun Orchestra is the first in the world to permanently combine classical Western and Eastern instruments. The music’s blend of traditional Eastern melodies with powerful Western orchestration is pioneering.
Mr. Woods enjoyed Shen Yun music tremendously. “I’m a big fan of Western culture. To see the commonalities of the West and the East come together was so beautiful,” he said.
“I love the mix of the oriental instruments with the Western [instruments]. It’s a beautiful mix together. This is very special. I’m profoundly touched by this. I appreciate [Shen Yun] keeping this culture alive.”
The erhu solo performance also impressed Mr. Woods. The erhu is an ancient Chinese instrument with only two strings. “That was amazing,” Mr. Woods said. “It sounded like a violin.”
Mr. Woods said he felt very hopeful about the future.
“Beautiful music is coming back again. There’s going to be a great renaissance, a great awakening, a great golden age of beautiful music starting this year. The time of the ugly modern art and modern music culture is finished, and now beauty is going to step in,” he said.
“Very inspiring!” Mr. Woods added. “[Shen Yun] emboldens me to want to bring back beautiful culture.
“This is a great renaissance coming. I really feel this strongly,” he said.
Having wanted to watch Shen Yun for a long time, Mr. Woods was very glad that he did this year, adding that he would “let everyone know I did this.”
Reporting by Frank Liang and Sophia Fang.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
