(W.E. Talk) Joseph W. Polisi: Music can make U.S. and China understand each other better
2025-01-17 Ecns.cn Editor：Xue Lingqiao
By Wang Zonghan and An Yingzhao from CNS
Recently, a video of the children's choir One Voice from Utah, U.S. , singing "As You Wish" in Chinese in the Temple of Heaven in Beijing went viral on social media. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States, the benign interaction between the two countries in the fields of music and other arts has long injected positive energy into the cultural exchanges between the two sides. Joseph W. Polisi, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and president emeritus of the Juilliard School, is not only an important witness, but also played a driving role. In September 2023, Polisi was awarded the first Orchid Award "Lifetime Honorary Prize".
We can see the same values in Chinese music tradition as in Western music, Dr. Polisi said in an exclusive interview with CNS's "W.E. Talk" recently. He believed that if we can directly apply the metaphor of music creation to geopolitical issues, perhaps we can also better understand each other in this important field.
Here are the excerpts of the interview:
CNS: Chinese culture encompasses many areas: such as food, architecture, music, etc. What is the first area of engagement for you? What got your attention in Chinese culture while you were in college?
Joseph W. Polisi: I grew up in Flushing, Queens, one of the most diverse boroughs in New York City and had many Chinese friends.
I was always interested in history, and I became fascinated in Chinese history during my undergraduate years as a political science major and then during my graduate studies in international relations at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. When I was a graduate student in music at Yale in the 1970s, I was very impressed with the new wave of Chinese musicians who were coming to study in the US and in Europe.
It was clear to me that China had awakened to a new period in which its society had committed to understanding Westen classical music. My great respect for Chinese culture and traditions has brought me to develop music education programs in China as soon as I began to work in the profession.
CNS: In 1984, you became the 6th president of the Juilliard School in New York. Just 3 years later, you led the Juilliard Orchestra on a tour to China, becoming the first American conservatory orchestra to tour China. What is behind the decision to tour China? What is the significance of the tour?
Joseph W. Polisi: I felt that it was important that Juilliard reach out to China and share our traditions, as well as learning from our Chinese hosts.
Our 1987 orchestral tour not only included orchestral concerts in various Chinese cities but also performances and master classes at several conservatories, where some of our senior faculty gave master classes and our students played American contemporary chamber music.
The power of the exchange was palpable, and this convinced me that Juilliard had to have some type of continuous connection to China during my presidency. The roots of the creation of the Tianjin Juilliard School in 2019 were created during the 1987 tour.
CNS: Under your leadership and guidance, Juilliard maintained a good relationship with China for the past four decades. How has China changed over the past 40 years in your observation?
Joseph W. Polisi: When I arrived in China in 1987 the roads were filled with bicycles. Now those bicycles have been replaced, for the most past, by automobiles. From 1987 to 2025 China has gone from an emerging nation to an economic powerhouse that has a very important role on the global stage. Music education in China has also been evolving during this period due to the influence of many educational institutions from around the globe which have worked with Chinese conservatories and the Ministry of Education to share curricular, performance, and other elements of the music educational process.
The Tianjin Juilliard School sees itself as a catalyst bringing the best of global music educational traditions to not only Tianjin but also China, East Asia, and beyond.
CNS: Tianjin Juilliard School (TJS) is a collaboration project between the United States and China on music education. Why did you choose China to build a branch campus of Juilliard? What are the results of this project so far?
Joseph W. Polisi: In about 2008, working with the chairman of the Juilliard board, Bruce Kovner, we embarked on a study of how Juilliard could have a global presence in the world of professional music education.
Although we explored various countries and educational structures, we found that China as a nation and Tianjin as a city were best positioned to support our efforts in creating a permanent Juilliard presence in a country outside of the United States. Since 2011, we have been able to create a robust and productive partnership with our Chinese colleagues from the Tianjin municipal government, the regional authority in the Binhai section of Tianjin, TEDA, the federal Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. All these entities, and others, have been instrumental in creating a partnership which has allowed the Tianjin Juilliard School to celebrate its fifth anniversary in 2024-2025.
We look forward to productive programs and exchange experiences in the years ahead.
CNS: Chinese musical traditions is very different from Western music traditions. What are things in common between the two? How to promote a dialogue between Chinese and Western civilizations through musical exchanges between China and the West?
Joseph W. Polisi: One sees in Chinese musical traditions the same values seen in the West: a respect for discipline within the art form, an understanding of tradition, a quest for excellence, and a process of understanding the fundamental goal that the arts can transcend humanity and present the best values for those who experience them. For me, it is always wonderful to experience Chinese and American young musicians coming together to perform.
Although they speak two very different languages, as soon as they begin to play music together, they find a common language which allows them to understand each other better as musicians and individuals.
If we can take the metaphor of music-making and direct it to geopolitical issues, perhaps we can understand each other better in this important realm as well.
