Shanghai Symphony Orchestra performs at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland on Monday. Photo: Courtesy of Shanghai Symphony Orchestra

Shanghai Symphony Orchestra performs at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland on Monday. Photo: Courtesy of Shanghai Symphony Orchestra

The Usher Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland Photo: Courtesy of Shanghai Symphony Orchestra

After their performance at the Ravinia Festival in the US on August 15, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra crossed the Atlantic to join the 2019 Edinburgh International Festival, the third stop on their 140 Anniversary World Tour.

The performance started at the famous Ushe Hall on Monday evening. According to festival staff, tickets sold out long before the show.

Founded in 1947, the annual Edinburgh music festival is usually held every August along with five other festivals, including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Edinburgh Military Tattoo and Edinburgh International Book Festival.

The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is the first orchestra from China to be invited to the Edinburgh International Festival.

The Monday concert started with Wu Xing by Chinese composer Chen Qigang, followed by Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104, B. 191 by Antonín Dvořák and Symphony No. 5 by Dmitri Shostakovich.

Yu Long, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra's music director and conductor, was called back to the stage twice.

"Scotland is famous for its whiskey, but I can't drink tonight, because I will bring you a 'Shanghai dessert,'" Yu told the audience.

He then presented the audience with an encore of the traditional Chinese song Liang Xiao, which means the wonderful night, by Liu Tianhua.

"Yu Long and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra have many fans in Edinburgh and the UK," Andrew Moore, head of music at the Edinburgh International Festival, said in an interview.

"We are also happy and honored to see the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra celebrate its 140 birthday at the Edinburgh International Festival."