The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) held a concert at the National Concert Hall in Taipei yesterday in honor of the late Rong San Lin (林榮三), founder of the Taipei Times and its sister newspaper, the Liberty Times, who passed away 10 years ago.
Under the direction of conductor Lin Chin-chao (林勤超), the orchestra during the “Sounds of Freedom” concert performed A Path Forward (生路), a composition by Chen Ke-chia (陳可嘉) inspired by Lin’s lifelong pursuit of progress and freedom.
The program also featured Russian pianist Denis Kozhukhin, who performed Johannes Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83.
Photo: Chen Yi-chuan, Taipei Times
The program traced a musical journey from classical clarity through romantic richness to modern vitality.
At a news conference on Thursday, Chen said that A Path Forward seeks to capture Lin’s enduring spirit.
Although no single expression can fully encompass his legacy, it serves as “a tribute to Taiwan’s enduring spirit and a gesture of respect for the land,” Chen said.
Photo: Pan Shao-tang, Taipei Times
Lin Rong San Foundation of Culture and Social Welfare executive director Tsai Su-fen (蔡素芬) said that Lin was able to retire without financial worries after success in politics and the corporate sector.
However, he believed that Taiwan should not only have “one voice,” devoting attention to the Liberty Times, under the motto “Taiwan Foremost, Liberty First” since 1993, Tsai said.
Lin visited printing presses in Europe and the US to better understand advances in printing technology, in hopes of increasing sales and making reading the Liberty Times more enjoyable, Tsai said.
Lin also stayed late at the office every night, only leaving after receiving the proofs of the next day’s paper, Tsai added.
His attention to detail resulted in the Liberty Times becoming the first Taiwanese newspaper to use full-color printing and ensured that the paper, at its height, had a daily circulation of 1 million copies, Tsai said.
Lin also personally selected opinion pieces and editorials on the future of Taiwan and compiled them into anthologies, gifting the books to readers in hopes that Taiwanese would be more invested in their community and thus lay the foundations of a sovereign entity uniquely Taiwanese, she added.
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