RICHARDSON, Texas, September 5, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- If your
notion of chamber music is limited to a small group of musicians
playing traditional, often familiar European classical works,
Chamber Music International's 34th season opening concert on
Sept. 27, 2019 at the Eisemann Center
in Richardson, TX, might forever
change your thinking.
"This season's opening concert will really showcase the range
and versatility of chamber music," said Philip Lewis, founder and artistic director of
CMI and professor of Violin and Chamber Music, at the University of North Texas. "This program will
feature both the past and present of chamber music. Even some of
our long-time fans might be surprised and challenged."
Performed by five internationally renowned musicians, the
program will open with selections from classical European folk
music, traditional Chinese music, and imaginative interpretations
of works by American jazz legend Thelonious
Monk.
The first half will prepare the audience for the main event of
the evening: the Dallas-Fort Worth
premiere of Tan Dun's hypnotic
"Ghost Opera" for string quartet and pipa (sometimes called the
Chinese lute). The work has been performed only about a dozen times
since its debut in the mid-1990s.
Lewis explains, "Those opening works represent folk elements in
Hungarian (Miklos Rozsa
--"Ben Hur" and "Spellbound"),
Bohemian, and American music. This is a theme we continue with
Ghost Opera."
The composer, Tan Dun, is a
Chinese contemporary classical composer and conductor, most widely
known for his scores for the movies Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
and Hero, as well as composer of music for the medal ceremonies at
the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Ghost Opera is a dramatic five-movement composition for string
quartet and pipa—with vocalizations and percussive effects from
water, metal, stone, and paper. The composition explores human
spirituality, employing elements from Chinese, Tibetan, English,
and American cultures, as well as a multitude of theatrical
traditions. "Remarkable," said the Los Angeles
Times of the piece. "In this broad-minded, culture-bending
opus, shards of Bach, Shakespeare, a bright pentatonic palette of
Chinese origin and such sonic exotica as the water gong find
peaceful and poignant coexistence."
Composer/conductor Tan Dun is one
of the best-known of today's conceptual music artists, with a body
of work that reflects his distinctive world and compositional view.
Gui xi (Ghost Opera) evokes the ritual of the nuoxi, or exorcism.
In China, the opera is performed
in villages to ward off evil spirits and gain the protection of
benevolent ones.
The audience experiences an atmosphere of mystery, as the
musicians use ritualized movement; vocalizations; and the elements
of water, stone, and paper to banish the ghosts of the modern
world. It embodies several themes that run throughout Tan's works,
including childhood memories of shamanistic ritual, elements of the
natural world, and multimedia performance.
Ghost Opera combines Western stringed instrument traditions with
Chinese shadow puppet theater, visual art, folk music, and East
Asian shamanic ritual. Performers step away from their normal
instruments to sing a traditional folksong that tells the sad story
of an orphaned girl; they make ritual movements while playing
instruments that express agitation; submerge instruments in water
to produce deep toned vibrations expressing anguish; and produce
sounds using paper and metal. A shadow cellist intones
Shakespeare's lines, "We are such stuff as dreams are made on,"
against a misty quotation from a Bach prelude. Theatrical lighting
and props add to the sense of mystery and ritual.
"This contemporary work will challenge your thinking about what
chamber music can be," Lewis says.
Presentation of "Ghost Opera" by Chamber Music International is
supported by an Eisemann Arts Innovation Initiative grant.
About the Artists
Pipa artist Min Xiao-Fen -- An in-demand interpreter of
traditional music before relocating to the United States, Min has forged a new path
for her instrument in modern jazz, free improvisation, and
contemporary classical music. The Village Voice lauded her as an
artist who "has taken her ancient Chinese string instrument into
the future."
Violinist Cho-Liang Lin – One of
the most outstanding violinists of his generation. Winner of 2001
Musical American Instrumentalist, his career spans nearly 40 years
of concertizing throughout the globe.
Violinist Michael Shih –
Concertmaster of Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, a frequent
performer at La Jolla Music Society and other festivals.
Violist Atar Arad – World renowned violist, pedagogue, and
composer.
Cellist Sophie Shao – Recipient
of Avery Fischer Grant and winner of
the Tchaikovsky Competition, frequent performer of Chamber Music
Society at Lincoln Center.
The CMI season opener concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27,
2019 at the Eisemann Performance Center in Richardson, TX. Tickets for the new season
eight-concert series and individual concerts will go on sale
beginning Aug. 1, 2019 at the CMI
website, http://www.chambermusicinternational.org.
About Chamber Music International
Chamber Music International is a Dallas/Richardson,
TX-based nonprofit arts organization that offers exceptional
classical music through performances and musical education programs
in Dallas-Fort Worth. The mission
of Chamber Music International is to: (A) present chamber music
concerts on the highest artistic level to a broad spectrum of
audiences; (B) enhance the Dallas/Richardson reputation for musical excellence;
(C) provide opportunities for youth to perform and learn about
chamber music; and (D) provide broader access to audiences
throughout North Texas.
SOURCE Chamber Music International