On Saturday, September 14, 2013, a "Mental Health Public Lecture" was held at the Green Studio on the second floor of Media Park Ichikawa in Ichikawa City.

First, Ichikawa City Mayor Okubo gave a speech, followed by a talk by Section Chief Hayashi of the Health Support Section of the Health Center, Health and Sports Department, Ichikawa City, about Ichikawa City's suicide prevention efforts.

Next, a 90-minute lecture was given by Dr. Yuko Momotani, a clinical psychologist at the Yokohama Rosai Hospital Mental Health Center, on the topic of "How to deal with stress effectively."

In the first half of the lecture, Professor Momotani talked about the various stresses we feel on a daily basis, and specific methods and ways of thinking to deal with that stress effectively. In the second half, there was a lecture on muscle relaxation techniques as a way to learn relaxation techniques, and participants actively moved their bodies under Professor Momotani's guidance.

After the lecture, there was a 10-minute break, followed by a mini concert featuring erhu (Cao Xuejing) and piano (Takeda Gen). The pieces performed were as follows:

① Island Song
② Namida Sou Sou
③Aisansan
④ Become a Thousand Winds
⑤Csardas
⑥Look up at the stars at night

The concert progressed with the erhu's majestic yet delicate tone enveloping the venue in a tranquil atmosphere, and at the climax of the performance, an emotional piece with rapidly changing tempos, "Csardas," the audience erupted in louder applause and cheers than they had heard up until that point.

There was also a moment when a question suddenly popped up from the audience: "How long does it take to learn to play the erhu?", surprising both Cao and Takeda.

During the final song, "Look Up at the Stars at Night," a singing voice came from nowhere, and as the performance progressed, the voice spread throughout the venue, creating a sense of unity between the stage and the venue.

I think this "Mental Health Public Lecture" was an opportunity to understand how to deal with everyday stress and to once again experience the healing effects of music.

Cao Xuejing

He is a soloist as an erhu player with the Shanghai Folk Orchestra, and is active in a variety of media, including public concerts and welcoming receptions for state guests, as well as television, radio, and records on China Central People's Radio and Shanghai Radio.

After arriving in Japan, he gave concerts throughout the country, mainly in Tokyo, and at the same time worked in a variety of fields, including performing music for CDs and commercials.

Notable works include performances in the NHK Taiga drama "Hideyoshi," stage performances in the play "Kill" organized by Hideki Noda, performances in the music for Ennosuke Ichikawa's Super Kabuki plays "Kaguya" and "Okuninushi," the theme for Tetsuya Chikushi's "NEWS23," NHK's "Chinese Language Lessons," and appearances and performances on NHK International Radio. In addition to Chinese folk music, he is also actively involved in collaborations with musicians of other genres, including participating in the production of Ryuichi Sakamoto's album, and performing with Japanese musicians, classical musicians, jazz musicians, and the Japanese drum troupe Ondekoza.

Gen Takeda

He has been active as a concert support and keyboardist for artists such as Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi, Chen Ming, Kotaro Yamamoto, Hideki Togi, Junko Yamamoto, Kai Band, and Takuro Yoshida.

He has collaborated with Korea's Reece and performed live with Minami Yoshitaka and Pecker as TAKIBI-tai across the country.

He is also an all-round player active in a wide range of genres, including producing background music for nature and healing DVDs.