Conducted by maestro Zhang Guoyong, the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra (SZSO) will bring an excerpt from Zhao Jiping’s “Silk Road Moment Musical,” Shostakovich’s “Symphony No. 10 in E Minor” and “Yellow River Piano Concerto” by Yin Chengzong, Chu Wanghua and four others this Friday night, featuring young talented pianist Wan Jieni as soloist.

Wan Jieni. File photo

In the form of moment musical, a short instrumental piece similar to an impromptu popularized by Schubert, “Silk Road Moment Musical” incorporates elements from Xintianyou and Qinqiang opera, both folk music styles originating in Northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, and borrows from the rhythmic and lyrical styles of Central Asian music. The selection for this concert is lively and joyous.

“Yellow River Piano Concerto” uses themes appropriated from Xian Xinghai’s “Yellow River Cantata,” a massive work of patriotism written during the War Against Japanese Aggression in 1939. The piece incorporates both Chinese and Western music styles.

Born in 1995, Wan began to study piano at age 4. At 15, she was admitted into the University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich, studying under professors Gitti Pirner, Antti Siirala and Wolfgang Wagenhauser. She is also a pupil of Professor Robert Blocker of the Yale School of Music. She has appeared with major orchestras under the direction of eminent conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Christoph Eschenbach and Yu Long.

Conducted by Zhang, the dean of the Conducting Department at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, principal conductor of the Shanghai Opera House and the music director of the Qingdao Symphony Orchestra, the SZSO will perform Shostakovich’s No. 10 symphony in the concert’s second half.

Zhang has a large repertoire encompassing symphony, opera, ballet and symphonic chorus. Having studied at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, he is an expert of Russian works, especially Shostakovich’s symphonies.

Composed in 1953 after the death of Stalin, this piece is historical for several reasons, one of the most prominent being Shostakovich’s use of the symphonic form, at a time when many other Western composers had abandoned the form. The composer employed memorable themes, intriguing forms, colorful tonality and modulations as well as complex orchestrations for the piece. It is still an incredibly popular symphony in concert halls today.

Time: 8 p.m., March 5

Tickets: 50-880 yuan

Venue: Shenzhen Concert Hall, Futian District (福田區深圳音樂廳)

Metro: Line 3 or 4 to Children’s Palace Station (少年宮站), Exit D