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The Philadelphia Orchestra has received a $10.5 million gift to fund, among other things, international cultural diplomacy.
The gift from David Cohen, the former CEO of Comcast and current orchestra board member, and his wife, Rhonda Cohen, comes just days before the orchestra leaves Philadelphia to tour South Korea and China. It will be the 14th tour of China since the orchestra’s historic 1973 trip as the first western orchestra to enter the communist country.
“It’s not an accident that we’re announcing this gift on the eve of the orchestra returning to China,” David Cohen said. “There’s a lot of tension in the US-China relationship but the one thing we seem to be able to agree on is music. Music is a convener, bringing people together and bringing countries together. It’s why music can be such a powerful tool of diplomacy.”
He added that he had personally witnessed the diplomatic power of the Philadelphia Orchestra when he was the ambassador to Canada under President Joe Biden. During his tenure from 2021-2025 the orchestra toured Canada with performances in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa.
“There is nothing that we did during the term of my service as ambassador, with the exception of President Biden’s visit to Canada, that attracted the attention, the number of Canadians, Canadian officials, and the warm feelings from Canada to the United States as the Philadelphia Orchestra’s visit,” he said.
For its upcoming tour of Asia, the orchestra will begin in South Korea, playing concerts in Incheon and Seoul for five days, then to China to play four concerts in Haikou and Beijing. In addition to the full concerts, the orchestra will split into ensembles and play together with local ensembles and host workshops.
Ryan Fleur is president and CEO of Ensemble Arts, of which the Philadelphia Orchestra is part, and said the orchestra must stay nimble in China. While the scheduled concerts are set in stone, what the musicians will be doing outside of those is often subject to last-minute changes.
“When we travel to China, it doesn’t matter what’s happening in the political universe. We’re there to make music,” he said. “But we want to be connectors when we can.”
Shortly after the orchestra completes its scheduled run of concerts, the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation will hold its summit conference in Shenzhen, China. Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested that he, China President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump meet in China during the summit. The three world leaders have never met together.
“It’s a very unique time that we’re traveling, which is just right around the time of the APEC summit,” Fleur said. “We will be there to represent America.”
