Grammy Award-winning artist and Indian American philanthropist Chandrika Krishnamurthy Tandon is partnering with the Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC) on an initiative that uses music, education and cultural exchange to connect young people across countries and foster dialogue and mutual understanding.
The YPC Tandon Global Collab was recently established with support from Tandon, who serves as a YPC Artist in Residence.
“It is an honor to support YPC in this extraordinarily important mission of bringing voices together, joined in song, across oceans, boundaries and languages … the true power of music,” she said.
“Music has always been my pathway to new bridges of love and healing with the world,” Tandon told The American Bazaar. “I’m honored to support the YPC Tandon Global Collab because young people need spaces to experience the world beyond their own borders. When these choirs come together and sing, they’re not just performing—they’re learning that harmony comes from honoring each person’s unique voice. They’re building relationships rooted in curiosity and respect. That’s a lesson the world needs right now.”
That vision will take shape in October, when YPC welcomes 45 young singers from China’s acclaimed Guangdong Experimental Choir to New York for a weeklong U.S.-China youth choir exchange featuring performances, rehearsals, educational activities and cultural experiences from Oct. 1 to 9.
The visit marks the latest chapter in a relationship that began with a virtual collaboration for International Peace Day in 2023. It was followed by YPC’s visit to Guangdong Province in 2024, and will now bring singers from Guangdong to New York City for the first time.
The gathering also comes at a time of renewed dialogue between the United States and China, adding a broader dimension to a program designed to build connections between young people from the two countries.
The Chinese singers will join YPC for several events across New York, including a free public performance at Lincoln Center on Oct. 3.
Titled “Song Bridge at Lincoln Center,” the performance will begin at 2:30 p.m. at Josie Robertson Plaza and feature the combined choirs under the direction of YPC Founder and Artistic Director Francisco J. Núñez and Guangdong conductor Xie Mingjing.
The exchange has its roots in a relationship between the two choir leaders that dates back more than 20 years.
Núñez and Xie first met in 2005 while representing their respective countries at the World Choral Symposium in Japan. Their choirs later met at international choral competitions before their relationship developed into a cultural collaboration.
“What began through competition has grown into a friendship rooted in mutual respect and a shared belief in music’s ability to bring young people together across cultures,” Núñez said.
Núñez said the young singers can build connections through music despite differences in language and culture.
“Our choristers and their peers from Guangdong may come from different cultures, but when they sing together, they understand one another,” he said. “They listen, they learn, they share their curiosity and hopes of the future, and they build relationships that last far beyond a single performance.”
The visit also coincides with the 100th anniversary of Guangdong Experimental High School, with the New York exchange serving as one of the school’s major international activities during its centennial year.
As part of the program, the visiting singers will participate in rehearsals at New York City public schools, educational exchanges at the Chinese Consulate and other cultural activities across the city.
YPC and the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in New York will also co-host a private reception and joint performance expected to bring together student musicians, educators, diplomatic and government representatives, and members of New York’s cultural and business communities.
New York City Councilmember Gale A. Brewer is scheduled to welcome the visiting singers on Sept. 30 and present a New York City Council Citation recognizing the cultural exchange.
The program is part of the World Bay Area Choral Dialogue, an ongoing cultural and artistic initiative connecting the two choirs.
The Oct. 3 Lincoln Center performance is free and open to the public.
(Editor’s note: This story has been updated.)