President Hu Jintao and other senior leaders on Tuesday attended an opening ceremony for the fourth Minorities Art Festival of China at the Beijing National Stadium.

Also present at the event were Wen Jiabao, Jia Qinglin and Li Changchun, all members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

Prior to Tuesday night's performances, Hu and other senior leaders met with representatives for the performers, including renowned folk artists from ethnic regions, as well as those coming from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

Hu urged the artists to continue to perform for the mainstream theme of ethnic unity and progress and make more contributions toward the prosperity and development of minority art.

A playbill for the opening ceremony included dance performances, singing, acrobatics and other forms of ethnic art.

The festival is being jointly sponsored by the State Ethnic Affairs Commission, the Ministry of Culture, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television and the Beijing municipal government.

More than 6,700 ethnic performers will participate in the festival, which will last from June 7 to July 6.