Orchestra surprise their new conductor with unexpected birthday song

'Disastrous moment' make performance full of love and care. Cheer~

Lahav Shani will officially become the principal conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in September this year. The day orchestra held a New Year's concert earlier was Shani's 29th birthday, so the musicians decided to give him a surprise.

The musicians were playing the Radetzky March composed by Johann Strauss Sr. before Shani was on the stage. When Shani got ready to conduct, however, the whole orchestra was suddenly out of control. They ignored the instructions and started to play the birthday song. At that moment, all in the concert knew what happened, singing the birthday song to Shani.

Shani was stunned, of course, and then gave a shy smiling and blew a sweet kiss to thank all the musicians and audiences who gave him a warm round of applause.

The little 'accident' in concert not only surprised Shani but also the neitizens. The video clip of the birthday song part went viral soon on the internet, and neitizens wished Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra and their new chief conductor getting better and better.

Since the HKSAR government hopes to attract tourists and boost consumption through major events and concerts, some concert organizers predict that more concerts will be held in Hong Kong in 2026.

The Coldplay's concert held in Kai Tak Sports Park, Photo source: Kai Tak Sports Park

They stated that many nonlocal well-known singers and groups have been attracted and shown great interest in performing in Hong Kong after Coldplay had successfully held concerts at the Kai Tak Stadium. It is expected that the number of concerts held in Hong Kong next year will increase compared with the statistics of 2025. In the eyes of some scholars, if other related cultural activities can be carried out to complement the concerts, the effect of attracting tourists to stay in Hong Kong would be better.

The concert of Nicholas Tse, Photo source: Kai Tak Sports Park

Since its opening in March, Kai Tak Sports Park has held over 30 concerts by the end of November. Besides the performances held in Kai Tak, a number of concerts and music performances have also been held at different venues in Hong Kong, attracting both local audiences and fans from the Mainland to visit Hong Kong. According to the related consumption statistics of a K-pop Boy Group concert in Hong Kong, some fans from the Mainland even shared hotel rooms for accommodation and visited some scenic spots in Hong Kong during their schedule of attending the concert, making the total consumption amount reach about 4,000 HKD.