You think you’ve heard just about every music genre. Then you meet Silk Road Music.

The Vancouver-based duo of Chinese-born Qui Xia He and Quebec-born Andre Thibault took the stage for the kick-off 6 p.m. slot at TD Sunfest Thursday with a mesmerizing performance of their music that fuses just about every other genre with Chinese.

As they performed — Qui Xia on the pipa and Thibault on the guitar — the crowd in Victoria Park began to build.

Qui Xia launched the 19th edition of Sunfest playing a Chinese folk song that morphed into a reel led by Thibault called The Devil’s Dream.

That was followed by a folk song from Qui Xia’s homeland, the Chinese province of Shaanxi, known as the cradle of civilization but also famous for the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses, life-sized sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China discovered in 1974 and has since evolved into a tourist destination.

From a small crowd of a few dozen music lovers, the audience built to a few hundred during the 45-minute set, many people stopping to listen to the odd pairing of instruments that sounded so natural together, yet so distinctive.

One of the more interesting pieces the duo performed was one written by Qui Xia called Clouds. It begins with a beautiful tapestry of finger picking, sounding much like a love song.

Then a teasing smirk appeared on Qui Xia’s face and her hands burst into a full Celtic throttle, picking away as excitedly as a fiddler would thrust his bow.

Silk Road was the first to marry or blend Chinese folk and classical music with Celtic, Latin, Arabic, Aboriginal, jazz, and blues music, which they did for their last piece, titled Candlelight, delighting the entire audience.

Qui Xia said she hopes their brand of music helps break down barriers for people who consider Chinese music inaccessible or too rigid.

“The pipa evolves, it evolves with different musicians . . . In order to have life, you must have change. It’s like the seasons. Without change there is no life,” said Qui Xia in an interview after the show.

While Silk Road played, across the park on the Galaxie Stage on Wellington Road, The Samba Squad was getting the party started with its percussion-heavy rhythms that touch on a variety of cultural styles from the Middle East to Latin and more.

Although the crowd was still building, Samba Squad had people dancing from the first beat, the 21-member band’s high-energy sound and infectious rhythms willing people to their feet to move.

The opening ceremonies were mercifully brief with a dozen or so area politicians on stage, MPs, MPPs and Mayor Joe Fontana, who often mentions he gave Sunfest its first federal grant of $5,000 to get it off the ground.

“In 19 years, this festival has gone from a dream to an internationally significant event,” said Fontana to applause.

“Sunfest is celebration of who we are and who we aspire to be and to celebrate the incredible diversity of our city and country.”

Many in the crowd appreciated the words, among them Sudanese immigrants Hayat and Omer Mihalsi, who have attended every Sunfest and now bring their two daughters, aged five and eight.

“We come every year because it’s a very nice time,” said Omer. “I love the music, especially the Latin music.

Said Hayat: “I like everything about Sunfest — the music, the food, the people and the shopping. There are different people here from all different countries and I like that.”

Juan Canas, a 50-year-old immigrant from El Salvador, said he also comes regularly.

“I like the diversity,” said Canas. “The diversity of the people, the music, all the different cultures.”

By the close of the opening ceremonies, the crowd in the park had grown to several thousand who then listened to the Mexican folk group, Los Vega Son Jarocho, followed by the lovely Caribbean queen Calypso Rose and Malian star Fatoumata Diawara at the bandshell, while several acts played on the Galaxie stage where the beer garden is set-up.

IF YOU GO

What: TD Sunfest 2013, the 19th annual outdoor festival of world music, dance, food, crafts and visual art in downtown London; free, but donations welcome; 36 performers, including Canadian-based world-beat and jazz acts at Kiwanis bandshell and four temporary stages.

When: Through Sunday.

Where: Victoria Park and a section of Wellington St. east of the park near city hall.

Details: Programs $3; more than 275 food and craft vendors; visit sunfest.on.ca or call 519-672-1522.