The Maestro’s first trip to Beijing in 1986 had exceptional features: for example, Maestro and the opera company traveled on the first Italian Alitalia flight landing on Chinese soil. The welcome by Chinese audience was extraordinary beyond all expectations. Maestro gave the first-ever concert in the Great Hall of People – until then reserved for government meetings and closed to performances – in front of 10,000 people, receiving dozens of standing ovations.

During his last trip to China in 2001, he had the honor of performing in the Forbidden City with fellow tenors Carreras and Domingo. To this day, the tenor from Modena is the best-known and best-loved opera singer in the great Asian country.
To honor this bond that remains unforgettable even after the Maestro’s passing, the Foundation accepted an invitation to remember him in two concerts in Gulangyu, presenting young opera singers on stage to recall the highlights of his career.
Artists on stage were: Giulia Mazzola, Iolanda Massimo, Giuseppe Infantino, Paolo Nevi, Victoria Pitts ,Yanusz Nosek, accompanied by pianist Paolo Andreoli.