The opening concert Photo: Courtesy of FCCH

Waving his baton in the air, conductor Tan Lihua led the Beijing Symphony Orchestra to kick off the two-month-long "Gateway to Arts" Summer Art Festival with a concert at Beijing's Forbidden City Concert Hall on Sunday night. 

The concert not only included Western classics like "Frühlingsstimmen Walzer, Op.410," "Suite from Swan Lake, Op.20a" and "Tritsch-Tratsch Polka, Op.214," but also featured Chinese songs like "I Love You China," "Ode to the Yangtze River" and "Upon the Field of Hope."

According to Xu Jian from the Forbidden City Concert Hall, the festival will also host other performances such as operas and pop music concerts as well as summer camps for young kids. 

The festival is scheduled to run until August 31.