On December 12, 2011, China’s National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing held the opening ceremony for the sixth annual global conference of Confucius Institutes. Li Changchun, a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, attended the conference. Liu Yandong, State Councilor and president of the Confucius Institute Headquarters council, gave a speech calling for “supporting the development of Confucius Institutes to further promote cultural exchanges.”
The ceremony featured an “I Sing Beijing” concert performed by foreign vocalists. The music included pieces from classic operas such as Madam Butterfly, as well as from revolutionary operas that forged and culminated in the Cultural Revolution, such as Red Guards on Honghu Lake and Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy.
The first conference was in 2006. More than 2,000 university presidents and representatives of Confucius Institutes from 105 countries in the world attended the 2011 conference.
Source: Xinhua, December 13, 2011
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2011-12/13/c_122412214.htm