The Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra will collaborate with Chinese pianist Zhang Fang and conductor Hu Yongyan to perform Debussy’s “The Sea,” Ravel’s “La Valse” and Liszt’s “Piano Concerto No. 1.”

    Hu served as music director and conductor of the Nebraska Symphony Orchestra from 1993 to 1998 and of the Minnesota Symphony Orchestra from 1995 to 2000. After returning to China, he served as music director and conductor of the Shanghai Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra.

    Hu led the Qingdao Symphony Orchestra on a well-received concert tour of the United States in 2009, performing at both Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center, which was described by The Washington Post: “Maestro Hu led his musicians, caught the full measure of the anxious despair Bernstein voiced in his score, with its tropical rhythmic patterns and percussive instrumental colors set against the chaotic noises of New York streets.”

    Zhang graduated from the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and was awarded a scholarship to study at the Eastman School of Music. Zhang was a finalist and prizewinner in the 2006 Vladimir Viardo International Piano Competition — where he was awarded the Rachmaninoff Society Special Prize — and the Missouri Southern International Piano Competition.

    Composed between 1903 and 1905, “The Sea” was initially not well received but soon became one of Debussy’s most admired and frequently performed orchestral works.

    Time: 8 p.m., Jan. 15

    Tickets: 50-280 yuan

    Reservations: 400-610-3721

    Venue: Shenzhen Concert Hall, intersection of Hongli Road and Yitian Road, Futian District (福田区红荔路和益田路交汇处深圳音乐厅)

    Metro: Longhua or Longgang Line, Children’s Palace Station (少年宫站), Exit D

    (SD News)