Asian Youth Orchestra performs in Tokyo (with photo)
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     ​The Asian Youth Orchestra (AYO) played a concert at the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall in Tokyo, Japan, today (August 30) as part of its concert tour across Asia.
     Comprising about 100 young musicians from various parts of Asia, the AYO earlier performed in Hong Kong, Tianjin, Zhuhai, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Chiayi City and Taipei. Afterwards, the AYO toured Japan and performed in Yokohama on August 28. The concerts in Tokyo today and tomorrow (August 31) will conclude this season’s tour.
     The performances by the AYO in Japan are supported by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Tokyo).
     Based in Hong Kong, the AYO gathers talented young musicians from all over Asia every year and takes them to different parts of the world for performances and cultural exchanges.
     The AYO has been playing a significant role in promoting arts and cultural exchanges between Hong Kong and Japan. Since the orchestra’s first public concert in Kumamoto in 1990, Japan has been one of the destinations for the AYO tours almost every year. The AYO was awarded Japan’s Praemium Imperiale Grant for Young Artists in 2010 in recognition of its outstanding contributions to the development of young artistic talent. It was also awarded the Nikkei Asia Prize for Culture and Community in 2015 for promoting friendship and understanding among young people across Asia through the common language of music.