Chinese folk singer Wang Hongwei gave a concert in Vienna Saturday evening, drawing warm applause from the audience.

Wang was the first Chinese singer to stage a concert of west Chinese folk songs at Vienna's Golden Hall and his performance held a 2,000-strong audience captive for more than two hours.

Born in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Wang sang with deep emotion that reflected his long experience and good grasp of the customs and culture of western China.

Some traditional Chinese folk musical instruments were also played during the concert including flute, erhu, matouqin, lute, dutar and tanbur which were new and fresh to many Westerners.

An Austrian woman in the audience, Usrar Elisabeth, praised Wang as "a great singer with a very beautiful voice." She said although she could not understand the content of the songs, she could "feel the beauty of the music."

Earning a reputation as "The New King of of West Chinese Folk Songs," Wang has won many awards in China and been invited to perform in Japan and Southeast Asian countries.

(Xinhua News Agency December 14, 2008)