Concert honored friendship between China and Belarus
To celebrate the friendship between China and Belarus, the Chinese Embassy in Belgium and the Belarusian Embassy in Belgium jointly organized a concert at the China Cultural Center in Brussels. It made for an amicable and harmonious evening.
In honor of the friendship between the two countries, the China-Belarus Friendship Concert was held at the China Cultural Center in Brussels on April 18. This event was supported by the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Kingdom of Belgium, the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in the Kingdom of Belgium and the China Cultural Center in Brussels. H.E. CAO Zhongming, Ambassador of China to Belgium, and H.E. Aleksandr MIKHNEVICH, Ambassador of Belarus to Belgium, both attended the concert. Among other guests were H.E. Sandro SIGGIA, Former Ambassador of Italy to Belgium; H.E. Erkinkhon RAHMATULLOZODA, Ambassador of Tajikistan to Belgium; H.E. Dilyor KHAKIMOV, Ambassador of Uzbekistan to Belgium; H.E. Lilian DARII, Ambassador of Moldova to Belgium and Luxembourg; H.E. Eugen CARAS, Ambassador of Moldova to the EU; H.E. Aigul KUSPAN, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Belgium; H.E. Natalie SABANADZE, Ambassador of Georgia to Belgium and Luxembourg; H.E. Fuad ISGANDAROV, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Belgium and Luxembourg; H.E. Maya DOBREVA, Ambassador of Bulgaria to Belgium; H.E. Chary ATAEV, Ambassador of Turkmenistan to Belgium; and H.E. Tatoul MARKARIAN, Ambassador of Armenia to Belgium. The event gathered a total of around 160 guests.
Before the concert began, H.E. Ambassador Aleksandr MIKHNEVICH took the floor to welcome the audience. He voiced great expectations for the joint performance by Belarusian and Chinese artists that is symbolic of the friendship between the two countries. He also recounted the long-established and ever-evolving close relations between Belarus and China: “Leaders of our countries stated that Belarus and China moved up to the new stage of bilateral cooperation and became strategic partners.”
H.E. Ambassador CAO Zhongming followed suit with a warm welcome. He affirmed the soaring development of China-Belarus relations in recent years, with the cooperation between the two sides strengthened within the framework of the “One Belt, One Road” initiative. About the friendship concert he said, “Music is mankind’s common language. I believe that tonight’s exchanges between the artists of our two countries can enkindle the artistic spark and further ignite the engine behind the friendship and cooperation between China and Belarus.”
The China-Belarus Friendship Concert featured both Belarusian and Chinese musicians. Vocalists Liudmila KARPUK, WANG Tiemin and CHENG Bo performed solos, duets and brought some songs together. Their repertoire included Belarusian songs, like the concert aria “Belarus”, and Chinese numbers, for example “China My Love”. They also presented renditions from classical operas, such as “Carmen” and “The Sicilian Vespers”. Violinist Yuliya LEBEDENKO entered the stage as well and played several classical pieces, from “The Four Seasons” for instance. The concert was accompanied by pianist Anastasia KENNER-KOZHUSHKO and conducted by Philippe GÉRARD. Underscoring the friendship between China and Belarus, these musicians gave the guests a harmony to remember.
