The year 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of sister-city relations between the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, and the City of Zhongshan, Guangdong. During the past twenty-five years, the two cities have worked together on many exchange programs and collaborative projects in many fields, including trade, culture, healthcare, education and so on, which have brought benefits to both cities as well as built a close and deep friendship between our citizens.

▲Punahou School

In 2016, the orchestra of Punahou School visited Zhongshan City. During this visit, Punahou School and the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Secondary School signed a sister-school agreement, and the two schools delivered a concert in the Sun Yat-sen school music hall. Punahou also worked with the Zhongshan Youth Philharmonic Orchestra to give a concert at the Culture and Art Center of Zhongshan. The performance was highly praised by the Zhongshan audience.

This year, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of sister-city relations between Honolulu and Zhongshan, Punahou School,  the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Secondary School and the Zhongshan Youth Philharmonic Orchestra decided to continue this tradition of music exchange and invited the Choir of the Zhongshan Experimental Primary School to join in. Much interaction took place over several months, and all participating groups expended a great deal of time and effort in discussions, rehearsals, video shooting, and editing.

Finally, the exchange program culminated in 30-minute online concert, with all participating groups playing one to two individual pieces each, and collaborating for two pieces with musicians from Zhongshan. One piece is Lü Wencheng’s Bu Bu Gao aka Rising Higher Step by Step, and the other is Li Haiying’s Our Sun Yat-sen. Dr. Mike Latham, President of Punahou School, as well as Lin Jialiang, President of the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Secondary School, offer remarks and express their willingness to continue this tradition of exchange and friendship. Student representatives from both orchestras make introductions and express their feelings towards the program.

Because there is an eighteen-hour time difference between the two cities and it is the first time all groups involved have tried this kind of online exchange, the final delivery of the program might not be perfect, but we are looking forward to, in the very near future, meeting each other in person, playing music together and continuing our friendship.

The Online Concert is dedicated to Honolulu and Zhongshan celebrating our 25 years of sister-city relations. We hope our friendship will endure forever.

Scan the QR code below to enjoy the show.

Program

- Akaka Falls by Punahou School

- Beautiful Night by Punahou School

- Butterfly by the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Secondary School

- Vivaldi concerto for Four Violins in B Minor (Movement I) by the Zhongshan Youth Philharmonic Orchestra

- Rising Higher Step by Step by Punahou School & the Zhongshan Youth Philharmonic Orchestra

- Our Sun Yat-sen by Punahou School, the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Secondary School, the Experimental Primary School of Zhongshan City, the Zhongshan Youth Philharmonic Orchestra,

With special thanks to Constance H. Lau, Li Haiying, and Yen Chun