Beats of the land – Artist’s persistence saves ethnic heritage
Percussion instruments are the oldest of any traditional instrument in China.
The earliest archaeological evidence of Chinese percussion music was discovered in Shanxi Province, where massive drums were made to celebrate the triumph of Li Shiminās army durig Tang Dynasty (618-907). Drumming in Shanxi Province can be dated back centuries earlier to Xinjiang County, the ancient name of Jiangzhou, in present-day Shanxi Province.
Rediscovery of ancient commercial roads in western Beijing
Located in western Beijing, the West Mountains have long been known to provide stunning sights for visitors. But whatās less well known isthat these mountains used to contain coal, and because of that were once part of an ancient trade route.
International students explore education innovations
A handful of foreign university students spent the final days of their summer vacation in the classroom in Beijing. Students from South Asia, Europe, North America and South America joined local counterparts to attend a weeklong workshop at Peking University that discussed how to incorporate advanced technologies into education reform.
Private children’s libraries booming in Beijing
Chinese parents with school-age children take this saying very seriously: āIt takes 10 years to grow a tree but a hundred years to cultivate a man.ā The good news for Pa and Ma is that there are now at least 10 public childrenās libraries in town to foster childrenās natural curiosity and creativity. They are all products of the vision of a handful of mothers.
Preparing for the fall and the winter
Thousands of Western-educated Chinese young adults are moving back to China to build their careers in different areas, instilling new concepts into old industries ā like fashion. Beijing Today spoke with some independent brands and designers to see what they have come for the cold season.
Experiencing historical flavors in modern Beijing
The best way for newcomers to experience authentic Beijing is not by visiting renovated temples but through the cityās centuries-old culinary traditions.
Let go of your prejudices and dive into a plate of fried tripe from a neighborhood diner, or salt-boiled wheat cakes sold out of backyards. Granted, it may take a bit of courage to try such exotic food, but Beijing is, after all, a city of fortune and favor, of old emperors and modern-day leaders ā it is, in other words, not a city for the timid.
If you can overcome your fears, youāll get an unforgettable memory of eating the food of Old Beijing.
Travel Beijing & China
Rediscovery of ancient commercial roads in western Beijing
Located in western Beijing, the West Mountains have long been known to provide stunning sights for visitors. But whatās less well known isthat these mountains used to contain coal, and because of that were once part of an ancient trade route.
Up to Bashang for a northern-frontier excursion
Only 200-some kilometers from Beijing, Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province is an accessible city and the nearest urban center to the Bashang Plateau, a natural grassland where one can camp, view sunrises and sunsets and go horseback riding.
Weekend
Vogue event celebrates China’s emerging fashion chic
āFashion is another way for Westerners to now Chinese culture, though it is just the beginning for us,ā Wang Wei, the first Chinese fashion designer to appear at London Fashion Week in 2006, said at aVogue celebration last Friday commemorating the magazineās ffth year in China.
Friday, September 3
Taiwan indie-folk duo katncandix2, founded in 2007, released its second album, Goodbye Prince, this year and is in Beijing as part of its eight-city mainland tour.
Book
Heart of ice – Andrew Miller finds a way to continue in his novels
“My novels are love letters to the world. A lot of what motivated me to write is a feeling of astonishment and a love for the extraordinary things in life. Darkness and anxiety exist in my work, and not by my choosing. You cannot separate one from the other.”
Capitalism as natural no more
The economist idol Adam Smith said capitalism was a natural outgrowth of human nature and inevitable, but Joyce Appleby sees its rise as unlikely from the start.
Center Stage
Beats of the land – Artist’s persistence saves ethnic heritage
Percussion instruments are the oldest of any traditional instrument in China.
The earliest archaeological evidence of Chinese percussion music was discovered in Shanxi Province, where massive drums were made to celebrate the triumph of Li Shiminās army durig Tang Dynasty (618-907). Drumming in Shanxi Province can be dated back centuries earlier to Xinjiang County, the ancient name of Jiangzhou, in present-day Shanxi Province.
Time to return – Leading artists assemble to define contemporary art
The China Avant-Garde Exhibition, held at the National Art Museum of China 21 years ago, was the first time many in the West saw contemporary Chinese art. Critics of the day called it the final curtain for the ā85 New Wave Art Movement, a vague period of time in the mid-ā80s when Chinese Avant-Garde emerged.
