It was 1 o'clock on Sunday afternoon when Anne-Sophie Mutter warmly greeted everyone at a hotel room in Beijing.

"I can still remember that I visited Beijing in 1996 for the first time. I walked around the hutong (traditional alleyways) and saw many beautiful old buildings. The city has changed greatly and is still beautiful," she says.

Clad in a red velvet suit, the violinist was going to perform at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing that night, along with pianist Lambert Orkis.

The last time that she played at the NCPA was five years ago.

"I have performed with Lambert for 36 years. We have different personalities and when we work together, we put our egos aside and listen to each other," Mutter says.

"One of the best things about being a musician is that you meet and work with talented people and you create music together. Every concert is different, and I am a person who is very easily excited, which makes me enjoy every concert very much."

The violinist also gives credit to Beijing, where she was inspired to launch Friends of the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation in 1997 to support young, talented soloists.

She recalls when she made her first trip to Beijing, she was invited to give a master class to young Chinese soloists.