Marching in tune: Symphony concert marks Long March

Symphony concert marking the 80th anniversary of the Long March is held in Beijing, Oct 12, 2016. [Photo/Sichuan Daily]

Eighty years on, the epic Long March still stirs Chinese people's hearts.

With the last sound of chorus echoing at the concert hall, symphony concert The Long March made a successful debut at the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in Beijing on Wednesday night.

The theme concert, composed by famed Chinese musician Zhang Qianyi, is dedicated to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Chinese Red Army's Long March  - the 12,500-km military expedition led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) to outmaneuver the Kuomintang regime.

The one-hour performance started with strong tremolos and twangs, recreating the sad feelings of the army forerunners' families when they said goodbye to their heroes who began the military maneuver from Ruijin, East China's Jiangxi province, in October 1934.

By combining Chinese folk music with Western instruments, the concert staged nine music chapters under sub-themes including Seeing off the Beloved Ones, Crossing the Luding Bridge, Snow Mountains and Grasslands and Joining Forces, taking audience on a journey back to the epic expedition that made history.

The concert was greeted with thunderous applause from some 1,000 audience members.

Chinese actor Liu Jing, best known for his roles as the late premier Zhou Enlai, hosted the concert.

The performance was jointly staged by the NCPA Orchestra, the Sichuan Philharmonic Orchestra and chorus from both Beijing and Southwest China's Sichuan province.

The Sichuan Philharmonic Orchestra said the show will also tour their home province on Oct 17.

"We hope the theme concert will help people remember our predecessors and work hard to fulfill the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation. This is the original intention of our creation, and also our ultimate goal," said the orchestra.