Shanghai Symphony Orchestra plays Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky and a suite inspired by Chinese cuisine

German printer and publisher Gerhard Steidl is also curating an exhibition in Singapore. Read more at straitstimes.com.

On March 23, the SSO playing at the Esplanade Concert Hall will not be the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, but the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. The oldest orchestra in Asia will make its Singapore debut under the baton of music director Long Yu.

The concert features the Singapore premiere of Hong Kong-born composer Elliot Leung’s Chinese Kitchen, and audiences can hear selections from the 10-movement work inspired by Chinese delicacies.

Yu, who is looking forward to tasting Singapore dishes such as bak kut teh, tells The Straits Times in an e-mail: “By interpreting China’s rich culinary culture through music, the work showcases the vitality and wisdom embedded in the Chinese way of life. My favourite movement is Buddha Jumps Over The Wall, as Elliot Leung composed it with rich imagination and sensibility.”

The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra will also play works by two giants of Russian romanticism. They are Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, performed with pianist Serena Wang as soloist, and Sergei Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony.

The highly anticipated concert is almost sold out, but there is still a chance to purchase seats in the gallery section behind the stage.

The concert comes after the Singapore and Shanghai orchestras signed an agreement for artistic partnership in October 2025. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra, in its first return to Shanghai since 2007, will perform with Singaporean violin sensation Chloe Chua at the Jaguar Shanghai Symphony Hall on Oct 13 under the baton of incoming music director Hannu Lintu.