Summary
Consul-General Chen Shijie attended the closing awards concert of the second New Zealand International Music Competition on 22 August and delivered remarks. Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka, MP Nancy Lu and close to 1,000 guests and music lovers attended. Chen said music is a language that crosses national borders and young people are the most vital force in China-New Zealand cultural and people-to-people exchange.
This year's competition brought musicians from different cultural backgrounds onto the same stage, he said, making it both a contest of professional skill and a dialogue between civilisations. The Consulate-General will keep building platforms, support closer friendly exchange between the two countries' arts communities and help steady the long-term development of China-New Zealand relations. Chen and Potaka jointly presented awards to the winners.
Commentary
China-New Zealand cultural and people-to-people exchange is warming, and events of this scale provide soft backing for the bilateral relationship. New Zealand's creative industries account for about 3 percent of GDP; music is a small segment, but an effective vehicle for sharpening the country's brand recognition. For small and medium-sized business owners, the competition itself brings no orders.
Yet the goodwill signalled by a consul-general and a Māori minister sharing a stage may lower the trust threshold for cultural goods and services entering the Chinese market, giving tourism, education and music copyright exports a platform to market themselves. The counterpoint is that cultural exposure needs commercial channels to match, or it risks staying ceremonial. Nearly 1,000 audience members and a pool of young musicians will only deliver tangible returns if they are converted into follow-on tours, co-productions and other concrete projects.
Keywords: Chen Shijie, second New Zealand International Music Competition, Chinese Consulate-General in Auckland, China-New Zealand cultural and people-to-people exchange, closing awards concert, Tama Potaka, Minister for Māori Development, Nancy Lu, young musicians, dialogue between civilisations
Source: Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Auckland – Consulate-General News
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