Listen to the hustle and bustle of Chengdu

A video titled “Listen to the hustle and bustle of Chengdu” was shown at the opening press briefing of the FISU 2021 World University Games in Chengdu. The video pays tribute to all the reporters involved in the coverage of the event and brings together in an interesting way a piece of the history of the city that will host athletes from all over the world at the spectacular Universiade.

Stone carvings of 24 musicians and dancers at the Yongling Museum in Chengdu “come to life” and play music that resonates through the modern city. This royal orchestra, which was formed more than a thousand years ago during a prosperous era, will once again perform at the spectacular FISU World University Games event in Chengdu.

Ancient Orchestra and the FISU Games in Chengdu 2021
Twenty-four musicians and dancers are the embodiment of the royal orchestra from the end of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) to the Five Dynasties period (907-979). The stone engravings are composed of twenty-two musicians and two dancers playing twenty-three musical instruments including wind, string and percussion instruments.

The twenty-four musicians and dancers, a royal orchestra from more than 1,000 years ago, performed especially for great occasions. A thousand years later, a grand event summons the orchestra. The sounds are collected with the help of a conch shell, creating harmony for the FISU Games in Chengdu 2021.

The conch collects the sounds of Chengdu
A musician travels back in time to the modern city of Chengdu and experiences a mixture of the familiar and the exotic. She collects all kinds of sounds of the city by holding a conch shell in her hand. The conch, as legend has it, can preserve and transmit sound that remains the same for thousands of years.

The musician walks down Kuanzhai Lane through various architectures from the Qing Dynasty to the traditional style of Western Sichuan, collecting sounds of relaxation, comfort and lightness. On Yulin Street, the musician experiences the vitality of art and life that can only be found in Chengdu. At Guixi Ecological Park, he enjoys a time of tranquility in the bustling city. At the Chengdu Panda Base, he meets Zhima, the great panda, the true inspiration for the games’ mascot “Rongbao”.

As night falls, the musician enjoys a dazzling light show projected from the Twin Towers Financial City Tianfu. In Chengdu, modern culture and traditional culture depend on each other, complement each other and develop together.

New music played with old instruments
As the call of the Games becomes more intense, the musician realizes that the ornament on her forehead has been transformed into a symbolic image of the Games. The call now leads her to a high-tech sports hall in Chengdu.

The musician sees her Tang-clad companions sitting quietly in the gymnasium, as if waiting for something. She holds her conch shell in the air and lets out all the sounds she has picked up. Her companions are awakened by the sounds and 24 musicians and dancers begin to perform.