Chinese pianist Tian Jiaxin is set to embark on a nationwide concert tour, Xin Music Journey, from July to October, visiting eight cities across China, including Beijing, Shenzhen, and Foshan. The tour, officially announced in Beijing on June 5, integrates live performances with cultural tourism and digital storytelling through an accompanying documentary-style online series titled Following the Music on a Journey.
The tour aims to create a unique experience at each stop by tailoring performances to reflect the cultural heritage and distinct character of each host city. Tian emphasized the importance of connecting the music to the local environment, noting that even the encore pieces will be specially selected to resonate with the audience in each location. The program will feature a diverse repertoire that combines Western classical works by composers such as Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, and Liszt, alongside traditional Chinese compositions, including The Shepherd’s Flute and Shandan Flowers Bloom Bright Red.
In addition to solo piano performances, some concerts will offer immersive audiovisual experiences incorporating elements like Chinese animation, sand art, and projections of classical poetry. Tian’s longtime commitment to integrating Chinese music in her performances remains a focal point of the tour. She expressed particular affinity for the Yellow River Piano Concerto, adapted by pianist Yin Chengzong from Xian Xinghai’s original cantata, which she has performed internationally with different orchestras.
Born into a musical family in Beijing, Tian’s early exposure to music shaped her lifelong dedication to the piano. Both her parents are professional musicians—her mother a soprano and her father a composer and conductor. Encouraged by her family’s emphasis on discipline and seriousness toward music, Tian began formal piano study at age three. She later attended the Shenyang Conservatory of Music and furthered her training at the Manhattan School of Music in New York, earning a master’s degree in 2012. That year, she gained recognition for her performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 at Carnegie Hall and returned to China to hold a solo concert in Shenyang.
Beyond performance, Tian advocates for music education and plans to hold masterclasses and public events in each city during the tour. She stresses the importance of cultivating an initial interest in music, particularly for children, and highlights the benefits of piano study for adults, including mental engagement and stress relief. Tian encourages learners to focus on music they enjoy rather than starting with technically difficult pieces.
The documentary series developed alongside the tour offers viewers an expanded cultural perspective, chronicling Tian’s visits to historical sites, local craft workshops, and urban soundscapes in each city. Wang Lu, deputy general manager of the China Performing Arts Agency, which co-organizes the tour, explained that the project combines documentary filmmaking, urban sound sampling, and AI-generated audiovisual effects to explore the interplay between music, culture, and daily life.
Tian also continues to explore artistic innovation through collaborations with traditional Chinese theater forms such as Peking Opera, Cantonese Opera, Hebei Bangzi, and Huangmei Opera. She described her work as boundary-crossing, aiming to inspire young audiences to discover the vitality and creativity of Chinese music in new and unexpected ways.