Thousands of guests at the 22nd Asian Advertising Congress were treated to a concert yesterday, featuring the diverse melange of Taiwan's cultural richness.
The musical extravaganza, jointly sponsored by the Liberty Times, the Taipei Times and the Council for Cultural Affairs, took place at the National Concert Hall, the climax at the end of the three-day conference.
"Taiwan's development lies not only in the economic but also in the cultural sphere ... This concert, with four themes, is aimed at presenting the beauty of Taiwanese culture and traced the nation's cultural development, giving the audience an unforgettable and educational night of music," said Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) at the opening of the concert.
Chang also lauded the media for spreading Taiwan's success story, with recent TV advertisements such as "Taiwan, go, go, go (台灣，加油！)," giving the nation an emotional boost.
The chairman of the Liberty Times, Wu Ah-ming (吳阿明) said, "In the past one tended to focus on the statistics of Taiwan's amazing economic development. But tonight we witness the vitality of Taiwan's civil society."
The Asian Advertising Conference was inaugurated in Tokyo in 1958. Taiwan last hosted the conference in 1966, some 35 years ago.
The first session of the four and a half hour program began with a series of popular folk songs such as If We Open Our Heart (
The second session entitled "Ad Asia" saw a combination of the theme songs of up to 30 motion picture commercials, presented along with the footage on a multi-screen media wall installed on stage.
The third session featured Five Preludes for Violin Without Accompaniment, Op. 16," a legacy of the late renowned Hsu Chang-hui (
The gala concluded with a session entitled "Culture Formosa" that combined music from famed Taiwanese folk singer Chen Ta (陳達), Taiwanese opera and Hakka folk songs.
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