On the evenings of December 14 and 15, 2024, the "Old Friends | New Voices" Yu-Peng Chen concert, jointly presented by YINXU CULTURE and Poly Performing Arts, came to a triumphant close at the AIA Grand Theatre on Shanghai’s North Bund. The concerts marked not only a milestone in Chen’s career as a composer, but a celebration of how far Chinese game music has come. As the house lights dimmed, the audience settled into an audiovisual journey through memory and invention, witnessing a shining moment for the art of game music.

One of the leading figures in Chinese game music, Yu-Peng Chen has written unforgettable scores for many beloved titles — from Justice Online to Sword and Fairy 7, Moonlight Blade and Neverending Dream — each carrying the memories and emotions of countless players. Over the two evenings, these works were reborn through the masterful playing of the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra.

The concert’s theme, "Old Friends | New Voices", captured the spirit of the program: the "old friends" are the games and stories players grew up with, and the treasured memories they hold; the "new voices" are the fresh arrangements heard on stage — and Chen’s ceaseless pursuit of musical innovation. When familiar melodies filled the theatre, they opened a door to the past, inviting the audience to relive the most stirring moments of their gaming years.

The program also featured several previously unreleased works receiving their first public performance, weaving new sounds among the classics for an experience at once nostalgic and refreshingly modern.

Joining the Shanghai Philharmonic were an array of distinguished guests — erhu virtuoso Ma Jiajun, singer Bucai, accordionist Liu Zhao and suona player Hunyuan — under the baton of renowned conductor Zhang Liang. Together with Chen, they told story after story through music, from surging symphonic movements to the most delicate solo passages.

Every piece in the program paid tribute to the journey of Chinese game music while exploring new possibilities for blending traditional and modern elements — a reminder that game music has grown into a vital medium of cultural expression in the digital age.

As the final note faded, the two-day concert drew to a close — but what it stirred in its audience lingers far beyond the theatre. As Yu-Peng Chen puts it: "Music is an invisible force. It can travel across the years and touch the softest place in every heart."