‘Culture is humanity’: cultural diplomacy expert Cathy Barbash reflects on 30 years of building US-China ties

When Cathy Barbash first visited Beijing in the spring of 1993, she knew she had an important mission.

As an orchestra manager of the Philadelphia Orchestra, she was expected to lay the groundwork for a performance in the Chinese capital to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the ensemble’s historic 1973 trip. That year it became the first American orchestra to perform in China following Richard Nixon’s ice-breaking visit to Beijing the year before.

“It was very emotional, because when the orchestra went in 1973, of course it was history-making, but after that, because it was such a special occasion, there was no idea whether we would ever be able to come back,” said Barbash, now a specialist in cultural diplomacy and an independent producer focusing on projects with China.

At the time of the 1993 trip, China was trying to break its isolation following the Tiananmen Square crackdown. The concert – the first by a foreign orchestra at the Great Hall of the People – was attended by as many as 8,000 Chinese spectators, including then president Jiang Zemin, as well as tens of millions of people around China who watched live on state broadcaster CCTV.

The Philadelphia Orchestra’s 1993 concert at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing was attended by up to 8,000 Chinese spectators and broadcast to millions who watched live on CCTV. Photo: Handout / Philadelphia Orchestra

Since then, the Philadelphia Orchestra has become a frequent visitor to China. Next week, 14 of its members will travel to the country for activities to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the orchestra’s 1973 tour.

In addition to performances in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Suzhou, the American musicians will join their counterparts from the China National Symphony Orchestra for a side-by-side concert at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing on November 11.

It will be the orchestra’s 13th tour in China, and their first since 2019. The anniversary concert is expected to serve as a timely reminder of how cultural exchange can bring together people from the two countries despite political differences.

While Beijing has yet to confirm the trip, there have been hopes that a face-to-face meeting between the two leaders – the first since November 2022 – could ease political tensions between the two powers, which have clashed over the South China Sea, tech rivalry, the Ukraine war and Beijing’s ties with Moscow, among other issues.

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Barbash said culture could be used to ease political tensions.

“I’m a very strong believer in cultural diplomacy and its utility in keeping lines of communication open, because culture is humanity and we all share that,” she said.

“Culture provides a safe space to discuss almost anything, even when other avenues between other aspects of our governments might be uncomfortable, we can always talk about culture, we can always share culture, because there is this shared humanity.”

Barbash said her 1993 trip to Beijing taught her a lesson about different ways of communicating.

After landing in Beijing on a chilly March day, she had a series of meetings with officials from the Chinese Ministry of Culture.

She proposed visiting the Great Hall of the People, where the concert would later be held, but she was told it was impossible because the National People’s Congress was in session.

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“Luckily, I had friends who are journalists here and they basically explained to me … the best way to communicate and to make sure that something happened,” she said.

They told her not to get angry and to express sadness and disappointment when upset instead, she recalled.

In the US, if a person asks for something repeatedly, it is considered nagging and bad manners. But in China, “you have to keep asking, because if you don’t keep asking, people will just say that it’s not that important”, she said.

“Every half an hour, I asked when are we going to see the Great Hall of the People [and said] I am so sad, I came all this way and it’s so important for the orchestra to be able to play their concert well here.”

On the last day of her trip, after a press conference and a dinner at Diaoyutai State Guest House, her Chinese colleagues sent her off in a car that took her to the Great Hall of the People.

“It was learning that there are different ways of communicating to make sure that different needs are met.”

South China Morning Post