| Matt-
Sorry for the delay in responding. I have been enjoying a nice holiday in china and a surprise visit from my girlfriend.
The entire classical music scene in China is somewhat new. For instance, in the last five years, the Beijing Symphony Orchestra did the Chinese premiers of pieces like Dvorak 8 and Prokofiev 5. The lack of exposure to western music is largely based in the country's history. i.e. the Cultural Revolution.
That being said, orchestras in China (outside of Hong Kong) don't draw large audiences period. Most audiences are about 500 max. However, they do seem to appreciate new music. We recently premeired a percussion concerto (Don't remember the composer's name) and it went over quite well. It's interesting, because Shostakovich, Stravinsky, and other "older" composers are equally new to many of the audience members. I will let you know in a couple weeks, when we do some Boulez, how the orchestra responds.
Zeb
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Zebediah Upton |