China a beacon of  hope for the world, says jazz giant Herbie

Lang Lang's 'soul brother' appears in gala performance at USA Pavilion

SHANGHAI - American jazz legend Herbie Hancock took tips from his Chinese "soul brother" Lang Lang when they toured Europe. Now, he is excited to see what the rest of China can teach the world at the Expo and beyond.

"The spirit of this Expo says so much about China, with its motto of 'Better City, Better Life', and the theme of green urban development. It represents that which the world is waiting for, so there are high hopes for China toward the world's development," said Hancock, who will perform his final show in the Puxi side of the Expo Garden on Friday night.

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Hancock made TIME magazine's list of 100 most influential people in the world in 2008, a year before fellow pianist Lang Lang made it on to the list.

"China in the past was like a sleeping giant, but today it has so much hope for the world, which is looking forward to see what good it is capable of in terms of the progress of the human spirit," he said at a press conference.

Hancock rocked the house on Thursday with a duet sung by Grammy Award-winning singer Dee Dee Bridgewater.

The two-night gala entitled "Jazz: An American Tradition" is one of the highlights of the USA Pavilion's entertainment calendar for the six-month Expo.

The Ensemble band Ozomatli will perform next Friday.

Other top attractions on Thursday included Spain's national ballet at the Expo Center and a concert by Mexican rock band Cafe Tabuca.

Hancock described Lang Lang, with whom he performed at the Classical BRIT awards in the United Kingdom last year, as his kindred spirit.

"He's a fantastic musician. We're both like soul brothers, even though he's much younger than me, but we bonded like we had a long-lasting friendship.

"Musically we both learned a lot from each other. I had a great opportunity to tour with him in the Unites States and Europe. The two of us got to improvise some pieces. It was the first time Lang Lang had ever improvised. I learned a lot from him on the classical side, about how to approach the music with more flexibility," said the Chicago native.

Hancock said jazz and the World Expo have much in common.

"My purpose of playing music is to bring people together. That's why jazz is such an important cultural vehicle. It demonstrates respect for various cultures and genres," he said.

"As an American, I come from a country of immigrants. So the face of an American looks the same as the face of a Chinese, or the face of an Indian or the face of a European... Jazz is a combination of all these cultures," he said. "It speaks of the ability of the human spirit to rise up and use creativity to overcome obstacles."

Bridgewater, who opened last year's JZ Jazz Festival in Shanghai, said the city is a cultural hotbed for young musicians to explore new genres.

"Jazz is a music of expression and communication," she said. "I hope the Chinese will have this experience of communicating with us and are able to see the joy that comes with communicating."