Senior Chinese leader Li Ruihuan Saturday urged Chinese artists to complete the task of videotaping classic Peking Operas as scheduled.

The videotaping is made by integrating the singing of prominent Peking Opera artists with the performance of their disciples.

Li, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, a national advisory body, said the eight-year videotaping project launched in 1994 is important to preserve the cultural heritage of Peking Opera.

More than 15,000 people from over 20 government departments and organizations have taken part in the project, including the Ministry of Culture, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television and China Central Television Station.

So far, Chinese artists have collected the sound materials of 342 classic Peking Operas sung by the country's best singers since the 1940s, with 312 having been videotaped.

Li Ruihuan called on the artists to work hard to finish the project as the deadline is just 100 days away.

(Xinhua News Agency April 21, 2002)