The Berlin Symphony Orchestra plays in Tuesday's opening ceremony for the 29th Harbin Summer Music Festival. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com /Xu Liuliu]

The 29th Harbin Summer Music Festival opened Tuesday afternoon, June 24, in the capital city of northeastern China's Heilongjiang Province, with more than 12 international art troupes representing 11 countries.

The festival has been jointly organized by the Ministry of Culture and the government of Harbin since 1961.

More than 30 concerts and dance and drama shows will be presented during the 16-day festival, including art performances by Turkish and Israeli dancers and a reproduction of the classic Broadway musical The Sound of Music.

Harbin Mayor Zhang Xiaolian delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the 29th Harbin Summer Music Festival on Tuesday, June 24. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com /Xu Liuliu]

This year also marks the one hundredth anniversary of Chinese symphony. The Berlin Symphony Orchestra, renowned for its classical music performances, was invited to play in Tuesday's opening ceremony along with Harbin Symphony Orchestra.

Classic songs like Ode to the Red Flag, Egmond Overture and Butterfly Love were presented as birthday gifts for Chinese symphony.

Harbin has become one of the major concert centers in China. Since May this year, Harbin citizens have given more than 100 performances in squares in the city, entertaining over nine million local people.

(CRI June 25, 2008)