Li Delun (; June 6th 1917– October 19th 2001) was a Chinese conductor who devoted his life to the promotion of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. Hailed as the father of China's classical music, the Li Delun Music Foundation and Li Delun National Conducting Competition was named after him in honour of his contribution to the development of classical music in China.

Career

In 1946, with support from

Zhou Enlai Zhou Enlai ( zh, s=周恩来, p=Zhōu Ēnlái, w=Chou1 Ên1-lai2; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman, diplomat, and revolutionary who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China from September 1954 unti ...

(who in 1949 became the first Prime Minister of the People's Republic of China) Li Delun took an assortment of donated

musical instrument A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make Music, musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person ...

s to the city of

Yan'an Yan'an; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi Province of China, province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several c ...

and became the founder, instructor, and conductor of China's first professional symphony orchestra. In 1953, he went to

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

to further his studies under the celebrated conductor Professor Nikolai Anosov. He returned to China in 1957 after graduating from the

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...

and was made conductor of the China Central Philharmonic and was put in charge to provide music at state and diplomatic functions such as entertaining important visitors such as

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...

on his earlier secret diplomatic missions to Beijing. Towards the end of the

cultural revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

, despite China's political tumult of the late 1960s, when all "decadent" music was banned, Maestro bravely presented

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

's Fifth Symphony in a concert commemorating the 150th anniversary of Beethoven's death. The event broke the ban on public performances of western music and drew worldwide attention and signaled the reemergence of classical music in China. In 1979, Maestro Li joined hands with American violinist

Isaac Stern Isaac Stern (July 21, 1920 – September 22, 2001) was an American violinist. Born in Ukraine, Stern moved to the United States when he was 14 months old. Stern performed both nationally and internationally, notably touring the Soviet Union a ...

to perform the

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

concertos of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

and Brahms. This historical musical collaboration was captured in the Academy Award-winning documentary From Mao to Mozart, which offered some of the first glimpses of a newly opening China. In the ensuing years, Li served as a bridge between musicians from China and abroad, performing with artists such as

David Oistrakh David Fyodorovich Oistrakh (; – 24 October 1974) was a Soviet Russian violinist, List of violists, violist, and Conducting, conductor. He was also Professor at the Moscow Conservatory, People's Artist of the USSR (1953), and Laureate of the ...

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi Menuhin, Baron Menuhin (22 April 191612 March 1999), was an American-born British violinist and conductor who spent most of his performing career in Britain. He is widely considered one of the greatest violinists of the 20th century. ...

Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma (born October 7, 1955) is a French-born American Cello, cellist. Born to Chinese people, Chinese parents in Paris, he was regarded as a child prodigy there and began to study the cello with his father at age four. At the age of seven, ...

, Fou Tsong,

Liu Shikun Liu Shikun (; born March 8, 1939) is a Chinese pianist and composer. He began his piano training at the age of three and started publicly performing by the age of five. He won third prize and the Special Prize of the Liszt International Piano ...

Yin Chengzong Yin Chengzong ( zh, c=殷承宗, p=Yīn Chéngzōng, Hokkien: ''Un Seng Chong'') (born 1941 in Gulangyu Island, Xiamen, Fujian) is a Chinese pianist and composer. Biography Born on the "Piano Island" of Gulangyu Island in Xiamen, Fujian, in t ...

and many others. The China Central Philharmonic Society traveled the world performing under his baton, and he guest-conducted numerous international orchestras, including the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The VSO performs at the Orpheum, which has been the orchestra's permanent home since 1977. With an annual operating budget of $16 million, it is ...

in 1986 and 1989 respectively. Maestro Li's professional and philanthropic work earned him rewards and accolades around the world. He adjudicated for the International

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

Cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

Competition in Moscow in 1990 and the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Some of his many awards include the Liszt Medal of Decoration awarded by Hungarian government and the Presidential Friendship Medal conferred by former Russian President

Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...

. Li believed that classical music was not rarefied art for the upper class but rather something to be enjoyed by all. He was a tireless advocate for classical music and spent his free time lecturing on the subject of music enjoyment throughout China, presenting its beauty and sophistication with a simple and humorous delivery to university students and factory workers alike, making it appealing to the younger generation as well as the general public. On October 19, 2001, Li Delun died at age 84 in a

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

hospital.

References

External links

Conductor infoFilm CreditLi Delun Music FoundationLi Delun Conducting Competition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Li Delun Chinese conductors (music) 1917 births 2001 deaths 20th-century conductors (music) Moscow Conservatory alumni