With 2024 and 2025 designated as the China-Russia Years of Culture, the China National Symphony Orchestra Chorus staged a performance at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing on Sunday, showcasing the grandeur of Russian classical works and highlighting the cultural exchange between the two countries.

Led by renowned Russian conductor Yevgeny Volkov, the chorus performed 14 iconic Chinese and Russian choral works.

A major highlight of the concert was the use of dual piano accompaniment for several pieces. Pianists Li Yue, Bai Jie and Ji Yujue took turns at the pianos, interweaving their melodies with the choir's powerful voices. This collaboration brought a rich, layered texture to the performance, enhancing well-known pieces such as Polovtsian Dances from the opera Prince Igor, Oedipus, and excerpts from The Yellow River Cantata.

"This performance includes timeless masterpieces by Rachmaninoff, Modest Mussorgsky, and Dmitri Shostakovich, along with beloved Russian classics, with which Chinese audiences are familiar. Through these iconic works, I hope to convey the charm of Russian culture," the conductor said.

"The musical ties between China and Russia run deep, just like the enduring friendship between our two nations."

The concert's grand finale was a stirring rendition of excerpts from The Yellow River Cantata, including the rousing Ode to the Yellow River and Defend the Yellow River. The dramatic conclusion, with its forceful choral power, left the audience in awe.