Business News Market makes CBSO set for China tour
a splash Fewer than one in ten businesses across Birmingham and the West Midlands may be aware they will soon be able to switch water retailer, according to new research from the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater). With less than six months to
go until the opening of the non- household water market in England on 3 April, Birmingham- based consumer watchdog CCWater fears a lack of awareness could see many businesses miss out on the potential benefits of competition. Awareness is particularly low
among smaller businesses, which is why CCWater is working with representative organisations, including the Chambers of Commerce, to put customers in the picture. Evan Joanette, from
CCWater’s Market Reform team, said: “We do not want anyone to miss out because they are unaware of these changes, which is why we’re doing all we can do raise awareness among the business community.”
The world famous City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra is to undertake its first ever tour of China. The tour begins at the end of December, and will see
the CBSO performing concerts in a number of major Chinese cities, including Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing. The tour will also visit Changsa, which is the capital of Hunan province, in south central China. During the tour, the CBSO will be conducted by
Vassily Sinaisky, and will feature star violinist James Ehnes as a soloist. Each concert will include well-known music by
Tchaikovsky, Dvořák and Elgar, and will begin in Guangzhou, Birmingham’s twin city, on 30 December.
The final performance will be in Beijing on 5 January,
at the city’s National Centre for Performing Arts. CBSO chief executive Stephen Maddock: “We have
been hoping to organise a tour to China for several years, after many invitations, so we are delighted that we have finally made this work. “The fact that is with such a wonderful conductor and
soloist, and that we will be visiting Birmingham's sister city of Guangzhou, will make it very special for all of us. “As with all our overseas tours, we are very proud to
be flying the flag for Birmingham, for the West Midlands, and for the UK as a whole - especially by including music by our first conductor, Edward Elgar. “We are also looking forward to encountering some
great halls and Chinese audiences for the first time.” As part of the tour, the CBSO has launched a Chinese-language website, specially designed to cater for Chinese audiences. The website provides information about the
orchestra’s history, the tour dates and an introduction to Birmingham in both Chinese and English.
The website has been created by digital consultancy
Tiger Creative, who specialise in digital technologies and also translation support. He said: “We were delighted to work with Tiger
Creative on this innovative project – we hope it will give Chinese audiences further insight into the CBSO’s work. We are very much looking forward to the Orchestra’s
visit to the country in December.” Tiger Creative co-founder John Abbott said: “The
CBSO is an internationally-acclaimed orchestral icon, and the appetite for Britain’s great cultural institutions is growing at pace in China, so a fast-loading, Chinese- language website is a significant gesture in reaching out to Chinese music lovers. As big fans of the orchestra ourselves, we’re
delighted to be able to power this for the CBSO ahead of their inaugural tour to China.”
Touring first: Vassily Sinaisky
Robert Ball Senior Private Banker Weatherbys Private Bank
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rball@weatherbys.co.uk W:
www.weatherbys.co.uk
18 CHAMBERLINK December 2016/January 2017
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