On March 20, 2026, the Spring Equinox, renowned pianist Kong Xiangdong will return to the venue where his artistic journey began forty years ago – the Shanghai Concert Hall. He will host a commemorative concert of a fully public welfare nature, inviting music-loving Shanghai citizens to immerse themselves in the beauty of music together.

" This concert is a main performance project of the 41st Shanghai Spring International Music Festival and will be made available to the public through free, welfare tickets, allowing the music spanning decades to become a warm memory belonging to the entire city.



Starting Point and Return: Kong Xiangdong's Forty-Year Memory with the Shanghai Concert Hall

"For me, the Shanghai Concert Hall has never been just a building，returning to the starting point after forty years is like having a conversation with my younger self, and moreover, it's an expression of gratitude towards this city," Kong Xiangdong confessed sincerely. Starting from Shanghai, he has won numerous awards at top international competitions, with his footprints gracing world-renowned venues like New York's Lincoln Center and Vienna's Musikverein. Western media have praised him as "a pianist who dares to challenge accepted standards while masterfully handling the nuances of the Impressionist school, a highly gifted artist combining the qualities of a thinker and a performer." This building, laden with Shanghai's musical memories, will once again witness this pianist's commitment to "never forgetting his original aspiration."



Triple Identity: Pianist · Educator · Public Welfare Advocate

In 2025, Kong Xiangdong was appointed as Professor at Large at NYU Shanghai, establishing his roots in Shanghai with a new identity and continuing to promote Sino-foreign cultural exchange and the nurturing of young artistic talent. From stage to lectern, Kong Xiangdong has completed a brilliant transformation from pianist to educator. "The younger generation needs guidance, and I am willing to be that bridge." His artistic journey is a vivid microcosm of how Chinese music has gone global and subsequently returned to its roots.

Even more touching is that "public welfare" has always been an unwavering undertone in Kong Xiangdong's artistic life. Since returning to China in 1997, he has long been involved in music education and charitable causes, founding the Kong Xiangdong Music Institution, launching the "Sunshine Music Initiative," teaching blind children to play the piano, organizing the "Love is Most Beautiful" charity concert, participating in various activities for the autistic community, establishing the "Kong Xiangdong Music Therapy Studio" at the Children's Hospital of Fudan University, creating "musical portraits" for medical teams aiding Hubei, and bringing musical activities to schools in remote mountainous areas – consistently using music to convey warmth and goodwill. For this public welfare concert, Kong Xiangdong has specially invited 10 girls from the Ethnic Unity Demonstration Class at the First Elementary School in Guangnan County, Yunnan Province, to perform a song together on stage. These 10 children are beneficiaries of the AIA "AIA with Love" public welfare project, and this will be their first time on a professional concert stage, singing distinctive ethnic minority songs at the Shanghai Concert Hall. Through this, public welfare ceases to be an abstract concept and becomes a tangible growth experience for the children.

From pianist to educator to public welfare advocate, Kong Xiangdong has continuously expanded his personal identity time and again. This embodies his practice of the principle "art belongs to the people" and echoes the Shanghai Spring International Music Festival's aim of serving the public and conveying warmth. "Over these forty years, the Shanghai audience has been my strongest support. Offering free tickets for this concert is my most sincere way of giving back to this city," Kong Xiangdong stated.

As an epitome of multicultural education, NYU Shanghai’s cross-industry collaboration with Kong Xiangdong has injected youthful vigor and educational depth into the main performance of the music festival. Professor David Atwill, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science at NYU Shanghai, stated that this concert represents a perfect fusion of cross-cultural education and artistic public welfare. "Mr. Kong Xiangdong is not only a world-renowned piano master but also our distinguished honorary professor. His artistic journey, from Shanghai to the world and back to the starting point, offers students inspiration that transcends music itself and endows this concert with unique educational and heritage significance."

The Close Collaboration Between Kong Xiangdong and AIA

This concert is exclusively titled sponsored by AIA, marking the third consecutive year of deep cooperation between the two parties. This close partnership has moved beyond the traditional brand sponsorship model. Over the past three years, AIA has collaborated with Kong Xiangdong to customize a series of activities: from concerts to masterclasses and various music therapy events. This has become a shared pursuit of aesthetic education and public welfare ideals. "Healthier, Longer, Better Lives" is AIA's brand promise, highly consistent with Kong Xiangdong's forty years of dedication and the Shanghai Spring Festival's goal of empowering urban culture.

Mr. Zhang Min, Deputy General Manager, Chief Customer Officer and Chief Healthcare Officer of AIA Life Insurance Company Limited, expressed: "AIA began building an aesthetic education platform three years ago. We consistently believe that aesthetic education cannot be achieved overnight. So, in the past three years, we have partnered with professional institutions and artists like Mr. Kong Xiangdong to carry out a series of high-quality artistic activities and public welfare systems serving the public. The value of AIA lies in providing more families with the opportunity to appreciate and learn artistic. This concert connects art, education, and the public, representing AIA's commitment to fulfilling social responsibility, deeply cultivating the Chinese market, and empowering cultural development. Through this concert, we also hope to help more families achieve 'Healthier, Longer, Better Lives'."

We sincerely invite you to join this appointment across time, to hear four decades of dedication within the flowing piano notes, and to feel the city's pulse within the public welfare's warmth. Let art blossom in spring, and let beauty linger with the music.