"Though we all have developed careers as soloists, performing chamber music has always been important for us. Chamber music is our unique way of communication," says Lyu.

Lyu, a junior prizewinner in the inaugural Menuhin competition, was invited by Yehudi Menuhin to study violin in London at the age of 11. In 1987, he became the first Asian violinist to win top prize at the prestigious Paganini International Violin Competition in Italy, which propelled him to stardom.

On May 5, the trio will play works composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff and Johannes Brahms.

According to Wang Luli, deputy director of the NCPA's Program Management Department, one of the highlights of this year's festival will be Rudolf Buchbinder, the Czechoslovakia-born celebrated pianist, who will give seven concerts from May 9 to 17, performing the complete collection of Beethoven piano sonatas.

"Few musicians have engaged with Beethoven's music as deeply and intensively as the legendary pianist Rudolf Buchbinder. He has performed the 32 piano sonatas 60 times in cycles all over the world," says Wang Luli, adding that the pianist has never played solo at the national center in Beijing, though in 2019, he played there with the Staatskapelle Dresden, both as pianist and conductor. Buchbinder is also known for being the first pianist to perform Beethoven's complete piano sonatas at the Salzburg Festival in 2014.