Intl accordion music extravaganza arrives in Penglai

Russian musicians perform with the bayan, a Russian type of accordion, on Aug 3 in Penglai, East China's Shandong province. [Photo/xinhua]

The 2018 International Accordion Art Week ran in Penglai, a port city in Yantai, East China's Shandong province from July 30 to Aug 5, allowing music fans from China and abroad to sample forms of accordion music from all over the world during the seven-day festival.

The international week included an accordion contest, accordion training classes and accordion concerts.

More than 2,000 accordion experts, scholars and professionals from China, Russia, Italy, and Serbia gathered in the port city to enjoy a top-class music feast.

"It is a grand gathering of eastern and western art, of traditional and contemporary art, of artists and the masses," Wang Shusheng, the vice president of the accordion department of the Chinese Musicians Association said at the opening cerenomy.

A concert featuring a variety of accordion music was staged on Aug 3. A group of Russian musicians playing the bayan, a Russian type of accordion, performed a number of authentic Russian pieces of music.

As part of the week's events, the "Parrot Cup" International Accordion Contest was launched in Penglai city on Aug 3. The contest enjoys a high reputation in China's musical circles. It aims to provide an exchange platform for accordion enthusiasts from home and abroad.

This year's contest lured more than 1,300 accordion enthusiasts from across China to compete for the third, second and first prizes. The performance types ranged from performances with a traditional bass accordion to a free-bass accordion.

The art week also held three accordion concerts and several expert courses to showcase accordion music to a wider range of people.

"Penglai is a renowned tourism city in Shandong province. It enjoys a pleasant living environment, elegant landscape and profound historical culture, all of which stacked in its favor to give the city the chance to hold the international event." Wang said.

Penglai city has extensive experience in hosting large events. In recent years, the city has hosted over 80 events that had a size of above 1,000 people and several academic seminars. It has also held a national acrobatics competition, swimming championships and a gymnastics championship.