Located on the US West Coast in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, San Jose is an international cultural city renowned for having the highest concentration of artist organizations, cultural and scientific research units, art entities, and prestigious art universities. It is also famous as the heart of Silicon Valley, the hub with the highest concentration of Fortune 500 companies. This selection of 100 international artists aims to recognize masters and artists who have made outstanding contributions to world cultural and artistic exchange in the 20th and 21st centuries. Previous recipients of this honor include renowned conductor Seiji Ozawa, famous pianist Van Cliburn, and American figure skating champion Michelle Kwan.
Zhao Cong is the principal Pipa performer of the China National Traditional Orchestra, a National Class-A Performer, and the first visiting art scholar at Stanford University in the United States. She has been dedicated to the global promotion of Pipa art, daring to innovate while inheriting tradition. She has visited more than twenty countries and regions across Europe, the Americas, and Asia, and was awarded the "Individual Contribution Award for Overseas Promotion" by the Ministry of Culture. Her personal Pipa album, "Listening to China," became the first Chinese traditional instrumental solo album released in the history of Universal Music Group and is collected by the National Library of China and the Library of Congress in the United States.