Chinese Dream — Concert in Commemoration of 115th Birth Anniversary of Premier Zhou Enlai Held

The theme song of the film The Founding of a Republic sung by male vocalists Dai Yuqiang and Wei Song reverberated in the Opera Hall at the National Center for the Performing Arts on the `evening of March 14. It marked the start of the concert in commemoration of the 115th anniversary of the birth of Premier Zhou Enlai， with “Chinese Dream” as the theme.

Premier Zhou was one of the great leaders of Chinese revolution in the 20th century. He was a great proletarian， a statesman， a strategist and a diplomat. His revolutionary career of over five decades was closely linked with the founding and the development of the Communist Party of China， the victory of China’s new-democratic revolution， and the course of the country’s socialist revolution and construction. He devoted all his energy to the Party and the people until his last breath.

Being the first premier of New

China， he exerted tremendous efforts in the country’s development in the political， economic， diplomatic， scientific and technological， cultural， educational， press， health， sports and other fields and made fundamental contributions. He not only possessed glory as a great man， but also the simple， down-toearth way of an ordinary person. He was devoted to the people and they loved him dearly.

As the first foreign minister， he initiated the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence and in compliance with the principle that countries irrespective of their sizes are equal， actively promoted China’s development of friendship and cooperative relations with all countries， especially the developing countries， to forge friendships all over the world. His broad diplomatic thinking， rich diplomatic practice， and unique art and style of diplomacy won him respect of the world.

Zhou Enlai was determined “to study for the rise of China” from his early youth， and all his life he “strived for the country’s take-off”. His outstanding achievements， high moral character and brilliant personality set an example for future generations.

You Are Such a Person， Memories of You from Our Hearts， People’s Public Servant， My Motherland and I， All the People， Unforgettable， Chinese Dream … These popular songs in memory of Premier Zhou Enlai expressed people’s great respect for him. Wellknown vocalists including Li Guyi， Jiang Dawei， Deng Yuhua and Yang Hongji sang with deep feelings at the concert and their performance aroused the audience’s profound memories of the Premier.

During the concert， video clips of interviews of Hong Kong public figures were played and student representatives of Zhou Enlai Classes in China inter- viewed. They expressed their respect and love for him from different angles. American musician Mark Levine sang Huai’an — Promise of the Future， a song he wrote to express his respect for Premier Zhou. He said he came to Huai’an， China in 2005 to teach English because it was the hometown of Premier Zhou Enlai.

The three-part concert covered the dreams of the home state， the world and the nation， recalling respectively Premier Zhou’s faith in the people of the motherland， the friends of all countries of the world and future prosperity of the nation， and the practical side of his work. From the “Chinese dream” of the older generation of proletarian revolutionaries to the present-day aspirations of every Chinese， and from remembrance to inheritance， the concert fully showed the self-confidence and pride of the Chinese nation.

March 5， 2013 marked the 115th anniversary of the birth of Premier Zhou Enlai. The CPAFFC， the Art Concept Culture Institute， the Big Honor Entertainment， and the National Center for the Performing Arts jointly sponsored the concert to remember his great achievements and learn from his lofty spirit， and to extol the great dream of the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation.