Swedish orchestra’s China tour ends in success

Nagano asked Hillborg to compose a piece, to "represent the Sweden of today", and "tie together the cultures of China and Sweden". The composer created Beast Sampler, drawing inspiration from his fascination with the mystical creatures in both Chinese and Swedish mythology, Nagano says. Just like China, Sweden also has a rich heritage of mythology.

The 10-minute piece "is like a dream, with many colors and many pictures, mainly pictures of nature", Nagano says. "And in nature, the woods, mountains and the sea become very special Scandinavian beasts. They are mythological, or fairy-tale monsters, like the troll, valkyrie, unicorn ... many of them you find in the movie Lord of the Rings."

Violinist Chen, 26, says this was the first time he has toured with a renowned orchestra to Asia, and playing with Nagano and the experienced musicians has taken his music "to a higher level".

In 2014, Chen toured with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra to eight cities in Europe, led by its artistic director, Yu Long.

Nagano came to China for the first time in 2014 and led the Montreal Symphony Orchestra to stage Life Love－Montreal Symphony Orchestra Concert in Beijing. He is also deeply impressed by the Chinese audiences and the theater.

The 64-year-old conductor is of Japanese descent. He used to work as the assistant conductor to maestro Seiji Ozawa at the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In addition to technique, Nagano says, Ozawa taught him "what it was like to be Asian in the West".