Mounting a musical peak

Zhang Yong with members of the jury during the 2013 Beijing International Music Competition.

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View from the very top

Zhang, who graduated from the middle school attached to the Central Conservatory of Music as a clarinet player, didn't wish to tap into any of his resources there. He wanted something of his own, with zero "guanxi" (connections) to worry about.

Independence comes with a price. Running the competition without insider discounts or shortcuts meant he would be in need of funding all along the way.

Zhang runs an art design studio, and he has won sponsorship from the municipal government and Ministry of Culture. But he needed more.

On the hectic award night, 40 minutes before the closing ceremony, he was still scrambling to pay bills and forgot about a change of suit.

It was one wild month even before these last-minute problems.

In October, he was under so much financial pressure that he seriously considered calling the competition off. "Imagine, it had come to the point that we've printed out the compensation clauses."

That's when aid from the Beijing municipal government came to the rescue, and he was promised cash in a few months.

So the game was back on, and went smoothly enough that no one detected the organizer's plight.

"That's the story of hanging on by a thread," he says. "Finishing is a great achievement."

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