When Jazz Breaks Into Eastern Melody

When jazz breaks into Eastern melody, something electric happens.

On March 1, Jazz at Lincoln Center Shanghai Big Band presents its first theatre-scale performance of the Year of the Horse at Shanghai Long Beach Concert Hall. Titled "East Meets Swing", this New Year's concert brings together Western big band power and the poetic subtlety of Chinese music in one sweeping, cross-cultural soundscape.

Led by internationally acclaimed saxophonist and Jazz at Lincoln Center ambassador Walter Blanding, the full big band will take the stage with special guests Ray Zheng and Erhu virtuoso Cai Bingru. Together, they will reinterpret twelve Chinese and Western classics, reshaping familiar melodies through jazz harmony, improvisation, and orchestral depth.

From "The Moon Represents My Heart" and "Tuberose" to "Moon River" and "La Vie En Rose," the program moves fluidly between cultures. "The Moon Reflected on Second Spring" meets jazz phrasing. "Horse Racing" surges with big band energy. Musical theatre favorite "Fine Snow" receives a new jazz arrangement carried by Ray Zheng's expressive vocals, while the erhu adds a lyrical Eastern resonance that weaves through the brass and rhythm sections.

Set within the architecturally striking Shanghai Changtan Concert Hall, often described as an "Eastern Dragon Palace" of light and water, this performance becomes more than a concert. It is a meeting of aesthetics, traditions, and artistic languages.

For jazz lovers, musical theatre fans, and anyone seeking a refined yet dynamic start to the Year of the Horse, this evening promises both grandeur and intimacy in equal measure.

Date: March 1, 7pm (90 minutes, including 15-minute intermission)

Venue: Shanghai Long Beach Concert Hall 上海长滩音乐厅

Address: 68 Fujin Rd E. 富锦东路68号

Admission: 80-320 yuan