A Russian piano prodigy, three opera gods, and 800-year-old party music walk into the Forbidden City...
A spectacular concert at the site of Beijing’s Forbidden City. The concert features the renowned Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and Maestro Long Yu, who perform Orff’s Carmina Burana with Aida Garifullina, Toby Spence and Ludovic Tézier, before being joined by Daniil Trifonov for Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2 and Mari Samuelsen for Max Richter’s Violin piece "November". Length 114′ (complete repertoire) / 71′ (Carmina Burana & Jasmine Flower Song) / 43′ (Piano Concert & November)
Direction
Mancini captures the Forbidden City's scale like a fever dream.
Sound
That wall of choir hitting during 'O Fortuna' — absolutely criminal.
Production
The audacity to stage Orff where emperors once ruled.
Director
Tiziano Mancini
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This 2018 concert marked the first time Western classical music was performed inside the Forbidden City's central courtyard — a space historically reserved for imperial ceremonies. The Chinese government specifically approved Orff's notoriously profane cantata, which celebrates gambling, drinking and lust.
Daniil Trifonov performed Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto on a single day's rehearsal with the Shanghai Symphony, having never worked with Long Yu before. The recording captures their first meeting.
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