AUSTIN, Texas—For Mrs. Ashley Cooper, classical violinist and member of the first violin sections in the Austin Symphony, Austin Ballet, and Austin Lyric Opera orchestras, Shen Yun Performing Arts was “quite the treat.”

“It was lovely, very graceful,” Mrs. Cooper said during intermission at the Long Center for Performing Arts in Austin Thursday night, April 11. “It was just very enjoyable.”

The Shen Yun Orchestra is a unique blend of East and West, combining instruments like the woodwind suona and Chinese lute pipa with a Western philharmonic orchestra.

“It was very good, very, very good,” Mrs. Cooper said of the Shen Yun Orchestra, which debuted the past year at Lincoln Center in New York. “I was very, very impressed. It had a beautiful sound and they were very together, and some of their licks [sets of notes] were pretty impressive.”

New York-based Shen Yun came together in 2006 with the mission of reviving 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture.

Mrs. Cooper was impressed with the work ethic and passion of the performers that allowed the level of the Shen Yun performance to be brought forward.

“It seemed very uplifting, all the dancers were smiling,” Mrs. Cooper said. “It was just a really great time.”

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.

The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.