The China Cultural Center in Luxembourg celebrated its Chinese mid-autumn festival on Sunday with an evening of culture and music blending eastern and western talents.
Yan Li photographs Jill CrovisierChinese ambassador to Luxembourg Xiaorong Yang joined via videoA traditional tea ceremony All photos: Mike ZenariVisitors to the event had a chance to discover more about the work that Artciel (a Sino-European association for art and intercultural communication) is doingTea samplesChina Culture Center in Luxembourg director Jing Zhang (3rd from l.) with members of Artciel and the cultural centreChinese ambassador to Luxembourg Xiaorong Yang joined via videoJing Zhang A traditional tea ceremony A traditional tea ceremony A traditional tea ceremony A traditional tea ceremony Yan Liu, Michèle Kerschenmeyer, Evelyn CzeslaSampling the teaGast Waltzing samples the teaYan Liu, Jill CrovisierYan LiuMichèle Kerschenmeyer, Yan LiuMichèle Kerschenmeyer, Yan LiuMichèle KerschenmeyerMoon cakes were served during the celebrationCamille Kerger was presented with red tea from ChinaWan JinGast Waltzing Jill CrovisierMichèle Kerschenmeyer, Evelyn CzeslaAward-winning calligrapher, Zhang Shaohui, wrote names for event participantsAward-winning calligrapher, Zhang Shaohui, wrote names for event participants
Photo: Mike Zenari
The mid-autumn festival, also known as the moon festival, is an important holiday for Chinese residents and diaspora and serves as a time to bring together families to celebrate the harvest. The tradition, which dates over three millennia, varies between mid-September to early October as it’s based on the lunar calendar with a full moon in the eighth month.
Sunday’s “salon”, held at the private residence of Luxembourg composer and musician Camille Kerger, welcomed a range of Chinese and local talents who performed pieces with a moon theme.
Among the performers was Kerger himself, who played percussion for the “Dance of the Yao People”, as well as trumpeter Gast Waltzing playing a jazzy “Blue Moon”. Guzheng player Yan Liu, who features in the upcoming October/November print issue of Delano, paired up with local pianist Michèle Kerschenmeyer to perform “Big Fish”, which energetically blended two classical instruments from eastern and western traditions.
Kerschenmeyer also performed Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” and accompanied soprano Evelyn Czesla for her two solos. Jill Crovisier gave two dance performances--including the futuristic “Zement” which gave the impression of being robotic, modern and other-worldly--while Wan Jin performed the "Dance of the Dai People - The Moon".
In the midst of the performances, there was also a tea ceremony with Oolong and green varieties, which participants sampled with mooncakes, a Chinese baked good typically eaten to celebrate the mid-autumn festival.
At the end of the event, vice president of the Association of Overseas Chinese Calligraphers and award winning calligrapher, Zhang Shaohui, provided a brief lecture on how to appreciate calligraphy through history and as an art form. He took the time after his lecture to write the names of audience members.
