Gateway to summer

A Beijing festival is set to inspire kids to pick up an instrument over the holidays, Chen Nan reports.

Having established itself as one of Beijing's biggest arts festivals for children during the summer vacation since 1995, the annual Gateway to Music, which will take place at the Forbidden City Concert Hall, is set to open on July 2.

With 16 mini summer camps teaching Western classical music, traditional Chinese opera, traditional Chinese folk dance and calligraphy to children as well as over 100 live performances and public lectures, the festival will run for two months until Aug 31. Looking to beef up its educational role, the festival organizers hope to build up more opportunities for interaction between international artists, local musicians and young Chinese students.