University of Aberdeen to celebrate Lunar New Year

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University of Aberdeen to celebrate Lunar New Year

The Confucius Institute of the University of Aberdeen will celebrate Lunar New Year with a packed schedule of family-friendly events this month to welcome the Year of the Snake.

The four events will showcase Chinese culture and traditions, kicking off with a Lunchbreak Concert in collaboration with Aberdeen City Council on Thursday (January 30) in Cowdray Hall. Attendees will be treated to a recital of traditional Chinese music, played by University of Aberdeen students on traditional instruments including the guzheng. There will also be a pre-concert talk, where the audience can learn more about the instruments used. The talk begins at 12 noon, followed by the concert at 12.45pm.  

The annual Spring Family Festival will return on February 2 with a programme that’s bigger and better than ever before. This year will see the Confucius Institute team up with University Collections to host a fantastic activity-filled day on campus, with more than 1,200 attendees expected across the day. Elphinstone Hall will host family-favourite activities such as Chinese calligraphy, dress-up, snake-themed crafts and Chinese games as well as Love Rara’s fabulous face painting. Take a break from the activities to enjoy storytelling with Pauline Cordiner in the Sir Duncan Rice Library (open from 11.30am) or visit the Imagined North’s exhibition.  

On February 7, a Lunar Ceilidh will take place in Elphinstone Hall, celebrating a blend of Scottish and Chinese culture. Local Yee's Hung Ga Kung Fu will perform spectacular lion and dragon dances before Aberdeen’s very own Iron Broo gets the ceilidh going with traditional Scottish tunes.  

Closing off the celebrations will be an evening of captivating music – Rhythms of the Moon: A Lunar New Year Celebration. Acclaimed percussionist Lin Chen and guitarist Kristian Sievers will perform together as Duo Pertar, combining contemporary percussion with traditional instruments like marimbas, vibraphones and Chinese drums. Tickets for the event at the Tivoli Theatre will cost £17.50, or £9.50 for concessions.  

Interim Director of the University of Aberdeen’s Confucius Institute, Sarah Wang, said: “This year’s Spring Family Festival will be our biggest to date and we are excited to host the public at our Old Aberdeen campus and across the city to mark the Year of the Snake. 

“These events provide an opportunity to not only celebrate Lunar New Year with the local community, but to showcase Chinese culture, language and traditions. We hope anyone with an interest will join us in our celebrations.” 

The Confucius Institute of the University of Aberdeen, established in 2013, provides Chinese language teaching, culture classes and cultural events to the north-east Scotland community. 

For more information about this year’s events, and further details about the Confucius Institute, visit https://www.abdn.ac.uk/about/campus/confucius/events  

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