On the evening of December 29, the 2025 “Melodies by the Yan Lake & New Year Gala” at CDUT was held in grand style at the East Sports Field on the Chengdu campus.
The event was graced by the presence of Liu Qingyou, Party secretary of CDUT, Xu Qiang, president of CDUT, Hu Bing, Party vice secretary, Tang Qingli, Party vice secretary and head of the Discipline Inspection and Supervision Group of the Sichuan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision at CDUT, as well as vice presidents Zeng Ying, Hou Mingcai, Ju Nengpan, Zhou Zhongli, and Zeng Guoqiang, who gathered with faculty and students to celebrate the occasion.
The evening began with a stirring recitation that expressed a deep sense of patriotism, followed by energetic dances that showcased the youthful spirit of the students. The cultural richness of China was beautifully presented through Sichuan opera. The colorful lights and flower drums set the stage as the vibrant melodies rang out, singing the song of the times.
Approximately 15,000 faculty, staff, and students gathered to enjoy this rich blend of art, education, and entertainment, uniting in shared blessings and welcoming the new year together. The event was broadcast live on the official WeChat vlog account and Douyin account of CDUT, allowing the broader community to join in the celebration.
During the gala
Auspicious lions dance in celebration of a prosperous era, as the loong and lions together bring blessings and good fortune. The evening opened with a heartfelt speech from Liu Qingyou. He noted that in 2024, CDUT had achieved significant milestones in talent development, teaching and research, faculty building, and international cooperation, reaching new levels of excellence. The year marked historic breakthroughs in various fields, including the approval of a provincial-level flagship Marxist school, the addition of national key talents, improvements in the ESI rankings, success in the National Youth Teachers’ Teaching Competition, the “Challenge Cup” competition for college students, as well as an increase in the number, level, and funding of research projects. CDUT also undertook several major national R&D tasks, including key projects in railways, hydropower, satellites, and resource development. “A salute to all the hardworking individuals!” he exclaimed. He extended his heartfelt wishes for the great nation’s splendid landscapes and the prosperity and peace of its people. He also wished for CDUT to reach new heights of success, continuing to write a glorious new chapter. Finally, he wished everyone a joyous New Year, with all hopes and aspirations fulfilled!
The gala continued with Liu Qingyou and Xu Qiang conducting the symbolic eye-dotting ritual, a traditional gesture of bringing happiness and good fortune. With cinnabar brushes in hand, they dotted the eyes of the lion costumes, invoking auspicious energy. Each stroke was imbued with their heartfelt wishes for CDUT and its faculty and students. Once the eyes were dotted, the “awakened” lions came to life in a spectacular display, tumbling and leaping to the rhythm of gongs and drums. Some roared toward the sky, while others sprang from the ground, exuding an aura of strength and bravery, their nimble movements embodying the youthful vigor and boundless energy of CDUT’s students.
Loong and Lion Dance to Ring in the New Year
The evening’s program was divided into two acts. As youth and dreams intertwined, the choir’s rendition of Stay True to Your Original Aspiration, performed by CDUT’s leadership and faculty representatives, set a hopeful tone, ushering in the first act, “The Legacy of Time, Together We Forge Glory.”
Stay True to Your Original Aspiration
CDUT’s street dance crew then took the stage with their high-energy performance of Youthful Street Dance. The dancers delivered smooth, fluid movements brimming with passion and youthful exuberance, showcasing the dynamic spirit and vitality of CDUT’s students in the most dazzling way.
Youthful Street Dance
The Yibin campus choir brought the cheerful and upbeat performance of Sharing My Sunshine with You, radiating the sweetness and joy of sharing, and capturing the vibrant hopes and expectations of the youth for the year ahead.
Sharing My Sunshine with You
Sichuan Normal University presented the Lotus Award-winning dance Distant Mountains Are Not Far, employing a refined and condensed artistic expression through delicate movements to convey the profound love and dedication of volunteer teachers, while paying tribute to those educators steadfastly working on the frontlines of poverty alleviation education.
Distant Mountains Are Not Far
The rap performance Climbing the Mountains was both compelling and evocative, telling a story of the courage required to scale mountains, while symbolizing the journey of life itself. With warmth and anticipation, it conveyed the youthful ideal of confronting challenges without fear and chasing dreams with unwavering resolve.
Climbing the Mountains
Xihua University’s cheerleading team performed Youth, Keep Going! with synchronized and energetic choreography, full of vitality and passion. Their routine celebrated the spirit of youthful students who dare to challenge themselves and strive for excellence.
Youth, Keep Going!
The recitation show Looking at a Tree in Bloom is profoundly meaningful, using the imagery of waiting for a tree to blossom to highlight China’s cultural richness. It conveys an unwavering love for the motherland’s majestic landscapes and expresses heartfelt wishes for the nation’s continued prosperity and flourishing.
Looking at a Tree in Bloom
The folk music performance Supreme Power features a stirring, forceful melody that transports listeners to an era teeming with heroic figures. The piece evokes the bold aspirations and patriotic fervor of ancient times, presenting a sweeping musical panorama while honoring the enduring legacy of Chinese history and culture.
Supreme Power
Renowned Sichuan Opera artist Ding Qiang and his colleagues delivered a remarkable performance, The Charm of Bashu, flawlessly integrating the artistry of Sichuan opera. This show invites the audience to experience the distinctive charm of Sichuan’s traditional cultural heritage.
The Charm of Bashu
The event was a vibrant display of creativity, with small dinosaur puppets adding a playful and delightful touch to the atmosphere. Students, donning “CDUT Dinosaur Hats,” enthusiastically shared their excitement on WeChat Moments. The highlight of the event came during the interactive lucky draw, where both teachers and students were filled with joyous surprise, exclaiming, “What a delightful surprise!”
Zhu Tiexiong extending his New Year wishes
The second half of the evening, titled “Dreams Set Sail, Youth Symphony”, featured an original rap performance, CDUT Youth, by CDUT. Merging rap with street dance, this energetic performance—characterized by uplifting rhythms and dynamic choreography — captured the pioneering spirit of CDUT students, who “Do not fall behind anyone, and strive to be the first.”
CDUT Youth
The subsequent music medley, Medley, showcased renowned musician and alumni representative Tang Di. The medley, alternating between joyful and poignant melodies, seamlessly blended various musical genres into a captivating performance. It was a true musical feast, offering the audience an immersive experience of the beauty and joy of music, as they collectively welcomed the dawn of the New Year.
Notably, one of the performers, Zhang Hua, a class-of-2013 graduate from the School of Humanities and Law with a degree in Public Affairs Management, had previously been honored as a Young Rural Entrepreneurial Leader of China. As an alumni representative, he not only took to the stage to sing, but also delighted the audience with a gift of sweet Shiranui mandarins, sharing a warm gesture with teachers and students alike.
Medley
The Dawn Orchestra, in collaboration with the Folk Orchestra, then presented an instrumental ensemble, Immortal Sound Above Cloud Palace, with a distinct and energetic rhythm. The familiar melodies transported the audience back to the youthful days of the legendary Journey to the West. The performance conveyed a powerful message: with a steadfast heart and a willingness to explore, anyone can become their own “Monkey King.”
Immortal Sound Above Cloud Palace
Zhang Yi, Liu Lina, Sun Pengxiang, and Jiang Ke from the Sichuan Conservatory of Music performed Navigator and Spring Breeze Across a Hundred-Thousand Miles. These sweeping, powerful songs, filled with warmth and sincerity, were imbued with boundless hopes and aspirations for the future. They evoked the power of spring and the beauty of life, while offering heartfelt blessings for the great motherland and embodying the dynamic force of youth.
Navigator and Spring Breeze Across a Hundred-Thousand Miles
International students, joined by their Chinese peers, then took the stage for the musical poem and dance A Loving Family. This captivating performance blended the cultural flavors of various countries, featuring harmonious melodies and profound emotions. It presented a beautiful vision of people from different nations living in unity and peace, highlighting the harmonious fusion of diverse cultures and the spirit of international friendship.
A Loving Family
The street dance performance Passionate Street Dance Show captivated the audience with its seamless rhythm and vibrant energy. The performers expressed themselves through dynamic movements, demonstrating the allure and coolness of street dance in an unforgettable display of talent.
Passionate Street Dance Show
The evening concluded on a soaring note with the rousing chorus of The Future is Mine. CDUT’s “Melodies by the Yan Lake & New Year Gala” came to a triumphant close. The youth, with their dreams riding the waves and their ambitions sky-high, declared their devotion to the motherland with fervent passion. “The future is mine”—together, let us march forward into the future.
The Future is Mine
At the New Year Gala, faculty and students of CDUT immersed themselves in the allure of traditional arts, setting the tone for a year of youthful ambition and dreams. With passion, they kindled the hopes of the New Year and brought to life the vibrant aspirations of the future. A delightful surprise came during the warm-up video, where faculty and students from various colleges, along with chefs from the logistics service group, dormitory staff, sanitation workers, the village Party secretary and team members from Heishui County, the graduate student teaching support team, the Mr. Deer Band, and youth internet civilization ambassador Zhu Tiexiong all extended their heartfelt New Year wishes to CDUT.
The “Melodies by the Yan Lake & New Year Gala” concluded in a jubilant atmosphere, filled with laughter and cheer.
Reflecting on the years gone by, we take pride in our legacy; as we embark on a new journey, our dreams have already set sail. New Year’s blessings remain as sincere as ever, and the dreams of the New Year burn with fervor. Let us carry our hopes for the coming year, chase our dreams together, shine brightly with the energy of youth, and write new chapters of success!
According to reports, the online audience for the gala reached 111,000, with 388,000 likes, sparking enthusiastic responses among faculty and students.
Address by Liu Qingyou, Party Secretary of CDUT
Dear faculty, students, alumni, and dear little “dinosaurs”,
Good evening! As we bid farewell to the remarkable year of 2024, we stand on the threshold of the promising year of 2025. On this joyful occasion, I offer my heartfelt New Year wishes to each and every one of you!
In 2024, we stood united, sharing in the joy of remarkable achievements. As we celebrated the fruits of our labor, we also embraced an unwavering confidence in the future. This year, we fortified our intellectual foundation and strengthened our core. We established the “Building China into a Powerhouse” team, secured approval for the provincial flagship Marxism school, listed in multiple new colleges and institutes, enhanced management teams, and recruited several national-level talents. A spirit of unity, progress, and courage has become ingrained within us. This year, we advanced our academic disciplines and achieved significant collective progress. We added two doctoral programs and five master’s programs. Our “first-class disciplines” have ascended to the top three nationwide, and CDUT’s overall ranking now stands fourth in the province. Our ESI rankings have soared, and our influence both domestically and internationally continues to rise. This year, we deepened our reforms and fostered new talent. We were honored as a National Advanced Collective in the Education System, secured first place in the National Youth Teachers’ Teaching Competition, and made notable breakthroughs in the “Challenge Cup” for college students, maintaining a consistent spot among the top 30 in national competitions. This year, we embraced innovation and expanded our research frontiers. We added three lunar soil samples, elevating our research to the moon. Major national deep-earth projects, significant social science initiatives, and follow-up projects for outstanding young scholars have all been initiated. The quantity, level, and funding of new projects have reached historic highs. Our achievements garnered significant attention, with accolades such as the State Science and Technology Progress Award (Second Place), the Johannes Walther Medal, the Chinese Young Women in Science Award, and the International Engineering Geology Award. Our publications in journals such as PNAS have become the center of cutting-edge academic discussions. This year, we strengthened our infrastructure and focused on service. We took on major national R&D projects, contributing our expertise to critical areas like railways, hydropower, key satellite missions, and large-scale resource development.
At this very moment, I know that CDUT’s laboratories are alive with activity, the library is aglow with light, and heated discussions are taking place in the studios. Everyone is working tirelessly, seizing every moment to push forward. Let us pay tribute to all those dedicated to their pursuits!
As we look to the year ahead, the future holds immense promise. Together, we will build a more beautiful campus and become the best versions of ourselves. Let us offer our heartfelt wishes for the great motherland—may it continue to enjoy breathtaking landscapes, prosperity, and peace. May CDUT achieve even greater heights and write new chapters of success. And most importantly, may everyone have a joyful New Year, with all your dreams and aspirations fulfilled!
