China Philharmonic to perform for Pope

BEIJING (Reuters) - China Philharmonic Orchestra conductor Yu Long sees parallels between his upcoming performance for Pope Benedict and the New York Philharmonic's ice-breaking concert in Pyongyang in February.

In both cases, orchestras were being used to set the mood music for diplomatic warming.

"You can make that comparison. If music as a universal language can make a contribution to diplomacy or world peace, I will be very happy," Yu told Reuters as he prepared to travel to Rome for the May 7 concert in the Vatican audience hall.

"Both trips bring people a positive message through music," the 43-year-old German-educated conductor said.

"It is a very special concert for me and a great honor to be able to play for the Holy Father," said Yu, who performed in 22 cities in North America and Europe in 2005.

The China Philharmonic is to leave for Rome on Sunday. Its performance for the Pope will be an unprecedented gesture that Vatican sources said could signal a thaw in often icy relations.

Beijing and the Vatican severed ties after the 1949 Communist revolution and have sought in recent years to normalize relations. But a dispute over who has the say in the appointment of bishops has impeded detente.

The Holy See recognizes Beijing's diplomatic rival Taipei.

Catholics in China are split between those who belong to a state-backed Church and an underground Church whose members are loyal to the Vatican. Pope Benedict has made improving relations with Beijing a major goal of his pontificate.

Yu said the Vatican was added to the original itinerary -- Italy and Austria -- at the last minute.

He declined to say who arranged the concert, but the official China Daily quoted Yu as saying it was initiated by the Chinese side and that plans "came fairly quickly" without elaborating.

Political analysts said the Chinese overtures towards the Vatican were aimed in part at improving China's international image, which has been dented by recent unrest in Tibet and disruptions of the international leg of the Olympic torch relay.

The orchestra will perform Mozart's "Requiem", a choice which Yu said was "appropriate" for the Vatican audience.

"The Holy Father is said to be a Mozart expert and very knowledgeable in terms of music," said Yu, who was born in Shanghai into a family of musicians.

"(It) can show people the height of Chinese understanding of Western civilization," he said.

The concert will include a rendition of "Jasmine Flowers", a famous Chinese folk song, together with the Shanghai Opera House Chorus. "I also very much look forward to the Pope seeing Chinese culture and Chinese musicians," Yu said.

Western classical music was banned in China as bourgeois decadence during the chaotic 1966-76 Cultural Revolution.

"China Philharmonic itself can reflect some tremendous changes in the country after 30 years of reform and opening-up," Yu said, referring to dramatic changes which freed China from the shackles of communism and transformed it into a powerhouse from an economic backwater.

"I think the concert is an opportunity for the world to rediscover China."

(Editing by Bill Tarrant)