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The Harbin Symphony: A European Legacy in China

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Musical Exiles and forgotten Maestros: The Story of one of China’s oldest Symphony Orchestras

In the early 20th century, Harbin became an unlikely capital of Eastern European and Russian musical culture—not by design, but through historical circumstances. The city’s symphony orchestra, founded as a cultural accessory to the Chinese Eastern Railway, evolved into something far more significant following the Russian Revolution. As Bolshevik forces consolidated power, countless musicians fled eastward along the Trans-Siberian Railway, carrying their instruments and traditions into exile.


Harbin Symphony Orchestra holds a unique place in China's musical history. Founded in 1908, it is now over a century old. Around the same time, the Shanghai Municipal Orchestra was established in 1907, evolving from a brass band. While Shanghai's ensemble drew musicians from Italy and Germany, Harbin's orchestra primarily featured artists from Russia, Czechoslovakia, and other Eastern European nations. These two orchestras were the first to introduce Western symphonic music to China, marking the beginning of the country's orchestral tradition.

The old Concert-shell of the Harbin Railway Culture Administration

The precursor to the HSO was the Chinese Eastern Railway Orchestra, originally the “Second Amur Military Railway Regiment Orchestra”, from Russia. After relocating to Harbin, it held its inaugural concert in April 1908 at the future site of the Harbin Railway Cultural Palace’s seashell-shaped open-air music venue—then just an empty lot with a temporary stage. The program included Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture, excerpts from Borodin’s symphonies, and vocal performances. By 1911, the orchestra had performed Pathétique Symphony, though its activities became sporadic during World War I before almost disbanding.

The orchestra’s transformation from colonial ensemble to professional institution occurred rapidly. 1918, its ranks grew with refugees from Petrograd and Moscow conservatories. Among them was violinist Vladimir Davidovich Trachtenberg, a Kyiv-born violinist, trained under the legendary Leopold Auer.

Violinist Vladimir Trachtenberg

The orchestra in 1919

Reconstructed concert programs preserved at the Heilongjiang Provincial Archives reveal the orchestra’s ambitious repertoire during its 1920s peak. A typical season blended standard Russian fare—Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony, Rachmaninoff’s piano concertos—with contemporary works by Prokofiev along with an occasional Chinese composition. The ensemble’s reputation attracted visiting soloists including pianist Alexander Zakin (later Arthur Rubinstein’s longtime accompanist) and violinist Mischa Elman, whose 1923 performance of the Glazunov Concerto reportedly filled Harbin’s Commercial Club beyond capacity. Other sources mention visiting legends Jascha Heifetz, Feodor Chaliapin and Efrem Zimbalist passing through the city.

The Japanese occupation of Manchuria in 1931 marked the beginning of the orchestra’s decline. While initially there were still 45 European musicians, immigration records show a steady exodus of musicians—Trachtenberg departed for Shanghai in 1934, while conductor and violinist Alexander Kassin relocated to San Francisco. Those who remained, like violinist Boris Kravchenko, adapted to increasingly difficult circumstances. Kravchenko’s unpublished memoirs, fragments of which survive in the Central Conservatory of Music’s archives, describe performing Mendelssohn quartets for Japanese officers while secretly teaching Jewish students banned from official institutions.

Concert Programs in 1920 and 1924

Postwar political changes completed the dispersal of Harbin’s musical community. Soviet forces briefly revived the orchestra in 1945 with surviving Russian players, but by 1956, the ensemble became entirely Chinese. Far from disappearing, Harbin’s musical traditions found fresh life—former members of the orchestra went on to shape classical music in Shanghai, Beijing, and beyond, while the Harbin Conservatory continued producing exceptional musicians. 

Today, the Harbin Symphony Orchestra remains a vital cultural force. Under music director Tang Muhai, it has toured internationally, showcasing both Western masterpieces and new Chinese compositions. In 2014, the orchestra found a new home at Harbin Concert Hall- a stunning architectural masterpiece by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. Besides its subscription series, it also performs regularly at the annual Harbin Summer Music Festival, drawing huge audiences and presenting soloists and conductors of international calibre- most prominently Zubin Mehta, who visited Harbin in 2016.

 

Photos©Harbin Symphony Orchestra; ©Old Syngogue, Harbin
©WFIMC2025/FR