More than 50 choristers aged from 8 to 14, along with 10 officials and teachers, and 20 parents visited and performed at the Lan Yuan Dunedin Chinese Garden yesterday.
It was part of a two-day visit to Dunedin — which has a sister city relationship to Shanghai — after the choir achieved success at the 13th World Choir Games in Auckland last week.
Conductor Shuyang Deng said the choir had rehearsed for nearly two years for their performance in Auckland — where they won a gold medal.
More than 250 choirs and 11,000 singers from more than 30 countries competed in the event.
"For us, it was our first time in New Zealand, so it’s very significant.
"Everyone was really friendly; and it was a great opportunity to learn from other choirs.
Mr Deng said the young choristers were looking forward to exploring Dunedin, and visiting Lan Yuan was already a highlight.
Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich said the choir’s visit was timely as it coincided with the 30th anniversary of Dunedin’s sister city relationship with Shanghai.
The relationship had led to many co-operative projects between the two cities, particularly in the fields of education, business, tourism, health and the arts, he said.
"This is Dunedin’s most significant international relationship, and it continues to flourish and bear fruit three decades after it was formalised in 1994.
"What a perfect way to celebrate this very meaningful milestone.
"We would welcome you with open arms if you ever decided to come to our university or one of our schools."
Dunedin has seven sister school relationships with Shanghai schools as well as student exchange programmes and joint study programmes, while the University of Otago co-operates in a variety of areas with universities in Shanghai.
