The Night of Beijing Forum 2015 PINE League Student Choir Festival was held at the Peking University (PKU) Hall on November 7, 2015. The Hong Kong University Students’ Union Choir, Taiwan University Medical Chorus, and PKU Student Choir performed during the event.
The Night started with a speech by Professor Ye Jingyi, Deputy Secretary of the PKU Party Committee. She praised the establishment of the PINE League last year and encouraged students from PINE League universities to create long lasting friendships. She presented souvenirs to representatives from the PINE League member schools—Hong Kong University, Taiwan University, and Tsinghua University—and then performances began.
First to perform was Hong Kong University’s Student Union Choir, which sang four songs: A Choral Fanfare, Seven Poems by Robert Bridges: My Spirit Sang All Day, Spring Dawn, and Swazhie Gat Umbe from Carmina Burana. They were followed by Taiwan University’s Medical Chorus that sang Kyrie Eleison, the Pearl of the Pacific Ocean, Lift Every Voice and Sing, Ose Shalom, and Yue Qin. Lastly, the PKU Student Choir sang Lux Aurumque, Mate Saule, A Dream Strain, and Karimatanu Kuicha. After the individual school performances, the three university choirs sang You Raise Me Up together and brought the event to its peak.
It was well received by invited guests and audience members with a standing ovation. Among the guests were H.E. Lakhdar Brahimi, former Under-secretary General of the United Nations, and former Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and League of Arab States for Syria, and his wife Mrs. Brahimi, H.E. S. Iqbal Riza, Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General, Mr. Park in Hook, President of Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies, Prof. Chang Ching-Ray, Vice President of Taiwan University. Representatives from PINE League universities, distinguished scholars, and students were also present.
Under the auspices of Chinese Ministry of Education and State Council of China, and supported by the Beijing Municipal Government, the Beijing Forum has been held annually since 2004. It is an international academic event co-sponsored by PKU, the Beijing Municipal Commission on Education, and the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies.
And this year, under the sub-theme of “Different Paths with Common Responsibilities”, over 400 eminent scholars, experts, and officials from around the globe gathered in Beijing to attend the forum, demonstrating the event’s relevance and prestige.
And as an integral part of the forum, this year’s “The Night of Beijing Forum” and PINE League students have come together for this choir festival. The PINE League, formed in August last year, seeks to bring together the best universities of the Chinese-speaking region to create an inter-school sports, cultural, and academic platform to facilitate exchanges and mutual learning.
Written By: Li Chun Hei
Edited By: Wei Yuchen
