Kenya-China ties find new expression through music diplomacy

NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 15 – At least 300 people gathered at the Kenya National Theatre on Saturday for a Chinese traditional music concert showcasing how cultural exchanges can strengthen relations between Kenya and China beyond formal diplomatic engagements.

The 70-minute performance, presented by the China Performing Arts Agency (CPAA), brought together Chinese folk instrumentalists and vocalists for an evening of music celebrating China’s cultural heritage while highlighting the shared connections between different cultures.

Organised as part of the 2026 China-Africa cultural exchange programme, the concert used music as a universal language to introduce Kenyan audiences to China’s traditional instruments, folk melodies and diverse ethnic cultures.

The event was co-hosted by the Beijing Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Beijing Musicians Association, bringing together performers from the Beijing Golden Bell Star Chinese Chamber Orchestra and the African Women’s Orchestra.

The programme was structured in two parts, beginning with outdoor performances and cultural experience activities in the theatre’s courtyard before moving indoors for the main concert.

The performances featured a range of traditional Chinese instruments, including the guqin, erhu, zhongruan and suona, alongside piano accompaniment and vocal performances.

Among the highlights was Flowing Water, an ancient traditional guqin composition reconstructed by Guan Pinghu, performed by Zhao Xiaoxia.

The audience was also treated to The Moon Reflected in Erquan Spring, an erhu solo composed by Hua Yanjun, as well as Memories of Yunnan, a zhongruan performance by Xue Miao accompanied by pianist Yuan Ding.

Other performances included New Horse Racing, an energetic erhu ensemble piece, and Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix, a traditional Shandong folk tune performed on the suona.

The concert also incorporated international and cross-cultural elements, with the African Women’s Orchestra performing Malaika, a composition by Adam Salim, demonstrating the role of music in connecting different cultural traditions.

Vocal performances included The River Flows Clear, a Yunnan folk song performed by soprano Wu Bixia, and an excerpt from Gaetano Donizetti’s opera Don Pasquale, performed by soprano Zhang Yi.

The inclusion of Malaika alongside Chinese traditional compositions offered a cultural bridge between the two musical traditions, reflecting the concert’s emphasis on shared artistic expression rather than cultural differences.

Through the selection of pieces, organisers sought to make Chinese traditional music accessible to African audiences, with arrangements tailored to local listeners and designed to be appreciated without extensive knowledge of Chinese cultural traditions.

Beyond the entertainment, the concert formed part of broader efforts to deepen China-Africa people-to-people relations through artistic collaboration, cultural appreciation and exchanges between performers.

​Bruhan Makong is a Senior News Reporter for Capital FM in Nairobi, covering diplomacy, foreign policy, national security, climate, and human rights across East Africa and the wider region.