Together with Wu Promotion, the Berliner Philharmoniker is planning a residency project in Shanghai at
two-year intervals, beginning in June 2022.
The performances in June 2022 are part of the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations
between Germany and China.
Under the baton of chief conductor Kirill Petrenko, the orchestra will give four concerts during this first
residency as part of a “Festival of the Berliner Philharmoniker”. Chamber music activities are also
planned, as well as master classes, concert introductions and other outreach and community projects. In
the course of this longer residency, the orchestra attaches great importance to a direct exchange with the
musical and social life in Shanghai and encounters with local conditions.
The Berliner Philharmoniker have already visited Mainland China on five occasions. It began with the
orchestra’s legendary first tour of China under the direction of Herbert von Karajan in the autumn of 1979
– at that time one of the first tours of the People’s Republic of China by a foreign orchestra. In 2005, 26
years later, the orchestra undertook a tour with its then chief conductor Sir Simon Rattle. This tour was
brought to a worldwide audience in the film Trip to Asia. Together with Sir Simon Rattle, there were two
further stays in China, in 2011 and in 2017 as part of the chief conductor’s farewell tour through Asia. In
2018, Gustavo Dudamel led the orchestra on a tour of Asia which once again included China.
With their new residency in Shanghai in 2022, the Berliner Philharmoniker will begin an exclusive
partnership with Wu Promotion.
“It is a great honour for my organization and me to become the exclusive partner for one of the world’s
most sought-after orchestras in the very promising region for classical music. Working with the leading
performing groups of the world to initiate international cultural dialogue has always inspired Wu Promotion
to continue its journey as an advocator of the arts. This new exclusive long-term partnership with the
Berliner Philharmoniker for the Greater China Area, which encloses Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, has
laid a further milestone for the development of Wu Promotion in its 30th anniversary.” Jiatong Wu,
President of Wu Promotion Co., Ltd.
Berliner Philharmoniker and Kirill Petrenko to start a multi-year residency project in Shanghai in June 2022 in partnership with Wu Promotion.
