How the Global Economy Is Forced to Do a Rejig on All Fronts

18 | Friday, April 9, 2021 HONG KONG EDITION | CHINA DAILY LIFE The China NCPA Orchestra will start its first nationwide tour on Saturday. The orchestra will visit six cities: Nanjing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Changsha, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY A moving performance Work by composer Zhao Jiping set to feature on NCPA Orchestra’s first nationwide tour, Chen Nan reports. he China NCPA Orchestra, go Symphony Center and other major Gustav Mahler, among others, as well the resident orchestra of the venues in the United States and Cana- as the world premiere of works by National Center for the Per- da. Chinese composers. forming Arts in Beijing, will Since it opened in December 2007, Commissioned by the orchestra, Tkick off its first nationwide tour on the NCPA, located on Chang’an Ave- Chinese-Australian composer Julian Saturday from Nanjing, Jiangsu prov- nue, has become an iconic landmark Yu’s piece, Evolution, premiered on ince. The tour, through April 17, will in the capital with its distinctive Dec 20. During the ongoing tour, the include five other cities: Shanghai, architecture and has attracted a long orchestra will perform it again. Wuhan, Hubei province, Changsha, list of top artists and companies. Violin Concerto No 1 by Chinese Hunan province, and Shenzhen and The birth of the China NCPA composer Zhao Jiping is one of the Guangzhou in Guangdong province. Orchestra was to meet the demand of most performed music works by the Under the baton of conductor Lyu the venue’s tight performance sched- orchestra during the past few years. Jia, who is the music director of the ule, especially for its own operatic Commissioned by the NCPA, the China NCPA Orchestra, it will per- productions by working with interna- music piece was performed when the form various programs, including tional artists. China NCPA Orchestra toured North composer Zhao Jiping’s Violin Con- Chen Zuohuang, the NCPA’s found- America in 2017. certo No 1, Austrian composer Anton ing music director, served as its first “It’s one of my favorite Chinese Bruckner’s Symphony No 6 in A chief conductor, and Lyu Jia took over music works, which is very beautiful Major and German composer Johan- from the second season in 2012. and has the sounds of China,” says vio- nes Brahms’ Symphony No 3 in F “When I started to work with the linist Lyu Siqing, who will play Zhao’s Major. orchestra, I had a vision of building it Musicians and organizers at the announcement of the orchestra’s Violin Concerto No 1 with the China With 2021 marking the 120th death up to a world-level orchestra,” recalls national tour at a news conference in Beijing on Tuesday. NCPA Orchestra during the tour. anniversary of Italian composer Lyu, who has worked with renowned Zhao, 75, who is known for his film Giuseppe Verdi, the China NCPA opera houses and symphony orches- scores for Chinese director Zhang Orchestra will also perform arias tras, such as Deutsche Oper Berlin, would say that they found their voice Yimou’s Raise the Red Lantern (1991) from his operas, such as The Trouba- the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the in this time. They need more time to and To Live (1993), as well as director dour, Nabucco and La Traviata. Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and strengthen their voice and reach a Chen Kaige’s Farewell My Concubine Violinist Lyu Siqing, soprano Song the Munich Philharmonic. “The The China higher level,” Lyu Jia adds. (1993), spent 10 years working on the Yuanming and tenor Wang Chong musicians of the orchestra are very NCPA “All the concerts we are going to music piece. will feature in the concerts. young and passionate. They are well- perform during this tour will be at According to Ren, besides the “We are very excited to launch our trained and open to new experiences.” Orchestra is major halls. Music lovers will take this nationwide tour, the orchestra will first nationwide tour,’’ says Lyu Jia, Under the baton of Lyu Jia, the Chi- very young. It has just opportunity to get to know the China give 36 performances up to August. who led the China NCPA Orchestra on na NCPA Orchestra performed a NCPA Orchestra,” says Ren Xiaolong, Last November, the orchestra record- its first North American tour in 2014. number of German and Austrian completed its first 10 managing director of the orchestra. ed Beethoven’s epic piece, Incidental “When the coronavirus pandemic hit works, which he believes, are the very years. I would say that Ren notes that the 2020-21 season Music to Goethe’s Egmont, Op 84 early last year, we did many online foundation of classical music. It was marks the 10th season for the China under the baton of conductor Lyu Jia. concerts and programs, which for this reason that Lyu Jia chose they found their voice NCPA Orchestra. The original plan Based on the translation by Li Jian- received warm feedback from fans Bruckner and Brahms for the orches- in this time.” was to have an 18-month-long session ming, the Chinese version of Egmont across the country. It inspired us to tra’s first China tour. from March 2020 to August 2021. was performed by soprano Song give performances for audiences of “Compared to world-renowned Lyu Jia, music director, However, the orchestra had to change Yuanming. On Tuesday, the recording China NCPA Orchestra more Chinese cities.” symphony orchestras, some of which the programs due to COVID-19. In was released. The orchestra returned to North are more than 100 years old, the Chi- November, it announced the 2020-21 America in 2017 and performed at na NCPA Orchestra is very young. It season at the NCPA. This features Contact the writer at New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Chica- has just completed its first 10 years. I music by Ludwig van Beethoven, [email protected] How the global economy is forced to do a rejig on all fronts There is no doubt that the COV- Kensy Sy, general manager of the percent in January and 6.2 percent across borders, says T. B. Nair, an hours and personal time, businesses workers in the 35-years-and-above ID-19 pandemic has left a trail of China operations at Alexander in February, compared with 5.2 per- independent expert based in the must support employees who are category, says Sy. Many such workers devastation and destruction along Mann Solutions, a global total work- cent in December 2019. The drop southern Indian city of Bengaluru. facing burnout, it says. had to switch career paths or move the slender economic fiber that con- force solutions firm, tells me that to was partly caused by companies Compared to bringing potential can- One of the most significant recent to other industries due to the pan- nects every aspect of our lives, cut- attract the right talent with the skills reducing their recruitment opera- didates to specific offices, remote changes has been that businesses demic, he adds. Though this is not a ting cultural links needed during and after a crisis, tions due to the impact of the pan- work gives companies capabilities to have been forced to accelerate their desirable trend, it is important for and erecting geo- organizations must revisit their demic, Sy notes. identify and hire talent from differ- recruitment processes, while man- members of the workforce who fall graphical boundaries. workforce strategies. Human Last year, newly employed people ent places and match their salary aging them remotely and digitally to into this segment to make the best The health crisis has resource teams need to have consid- in the country’s urban areas totaled packages and benefits based on the ensure adherence to social distanc- use of digital technologies to keep morphed into a glob- erable dexterity in redeploying, 11.86 million, which notably exceed- market rate, he says. ing measures. This trend is likely to themselves relevant, he says. al economic crisis, reskilling and upskilling talent to fill ed the expected goal of 9 million and But with the rise of remote work, continue until companies assess Employees should be open to putting at risk the gaps as they arise, he says. achieved 131.8 percent of the target employers will also need to evaluate when it is safe to have in-person hir- work mobility and should improve Ullattil survival, jobs and Many companies suspended pro- for the whole year. While the first and review priorities. They have to ing and onboarding processes, says their skills by working on different Manranjith incomes of millions of duction and operations at the height half of 2020 saw a sudden stop in consider the right strategy to allo- Sy. projects or performing different Second people around the of the pandemic in China, especially recruitment activities, with firms cate resources to areas that matter to While digitalized hiring will tasks. They should also be open to Thoughts world. in industries such as hospitality, choosing to freeze or reduce head employees, whether that is job secu- become more prevalent, there will improving digital skills to keep up That said, business- catering, tourism and foreign trade. count to sustain operations, job rity or mental well-being, adds Sy. also be new aspects like video with the demands of the times. es and human resources depart- As the outbreak forced workers to opportunities and demand started A recent Gartner study found that resumes, online assessments or “Technology and digital skills give ments are also having to deal with stay at home, many began to flock to to spike toward the final quarter of 48 percent of employees will likely tests, interviews and exercises.

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