On the night of December 16, "High Mountains, Long Rivers · Going Hand in Hand"--Symphony Concert, a commemorative event of China-South Korea Year of Cultural Exchanges, took place in Qingdao.

This event was hosted by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea, organized by the Qingdao Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, and co-organized by the Foreign Affairs Office of Qingdao Municipal People's Government.

At the concert, Qingdao Symphony Orchestra performed Chinese and South Korean classics like Song of the Phoenix, Jasmine and Arirang; Lu Siqing, a master violinist from Qingdao played his representative work--The Butterfly Lovers; conductor Lin Daye, tenor You Long, soprano Zhang Lili and suona (a Chinese double-reed horn) player Li Kang, all well-known musicians, presented impressive pieces.

To mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of China-South Korea diplomatic ties, the two governments officially set the year 2021-2022 as the "China-South Korea Year of Cultural Exchanges". During the period, both countries will deliver various events to promote cooperation and exchanges in fields such as culture & art, sports and tourism.

Since the establishment of China and South Korea diplomatic ties, the two countries have carried out diverse and substantial people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, established cultural centers mutually, and jointly delivered artistic performances and exhibitions, so as to boost people-to-people exchanges, said Zhang Xu, Vice Minister of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China. Cultural exchanges and cooperation is an important channel for learning from each other, a solid bridge for building political mutual trust and cooperation consensus, as well as a bond for consolidating the foundation of public opinions and enhancing people-to-people friendship.

The past three decades have seen the rapid development of South Korea-China relations, said Kyunghan Kim, Consul General of South Korea in Qingdao. To elevate the relations to a new level over the next three decades, it is most important to further deepen mutual understanding and trust between the two peoples.

As an integral part of the China-South Korea Year of Cultural Exchanges, this event attracted numerous Koreans in Qingdao. Aside from the symphony concert, the Qingdao (China)-Cheongju (South Korea) Artworks Exhibition that will run for two months opened at Qingdao Sculpture Gallery on December 15. Outstanding artists from six institutions, including Cheongju Culture and Art Association and Qingdao Federation of Literary and Art Circles, put on display 100 works, including traditional Chinese paintings, watercolors, oil paintings and photographs at the exhibition. The artists from Qingdao and Cheongju demonstrated their international vision and great competence of artistic expression from the perspectives of scenery, humanity, tourism, culture, folk customs and portrait.

Linked by the sea, Qingdao and South Korea are close neighbors that have maintained frequent economic, trade and cultural contacts since ancient times. The past years have seen frequent and broad exchanges between the two sides. In terms of economic trade, South Korea is Qingdao's largest overseas tourist source, second-largest source of foreign investment and third-largest trade partner. In terms of people-to-people exchanges, Qingdao has established sister city relationship with Daegu Metropolitan City, and friendly cooperation relationship with six South Korean cities like Incheon Metropolitan City and Pyeongtaek. Qingdao shares the fame of "UNESCO City of Film" with Busan and was selected as a "Culture City of East Asia" along with Cheongju in the same year.