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| Members of the China Orient Orchestra performing in The High Court |
Canberra
International Music Festival – Concert 7
High Court
of Australia – 1st May 2017
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens OAM
This
charming concert of Chinese traditional music, presented by the China Orient
Orchestra, together with guest artists, soprano Shu-Cheen Yu, and
instrumentalist, Nicholas NG proved to be as visually engaging as it was
aurally intriguing.
Originally
scheduled for presentation in the Chinese Embassy, the concert was moved to the
High Court of Australia, where the soft acoustic, enhanced by glimpses of
stunning autumn foliage through huge windows provided the perfect ambience for
the music, much of which was inspired by the beauties of nature.
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| Nicholas Ng playing the Gourd pipe |
Placed high
above the heads of the audience, Nicholas Ng provided a dramatic opening with a
haunting solo on a two-stringed alto fiddle called a Zhonghu. Following which,
the ten attractively costumed women of the China Orient Orchestra performed a
series of items on large Chinese zithers, arranged in various combinations,
ranging from duets through to sextets. Five of the fifteen items were composed
by celebrated contemporary composer, Wang Tianyi, who also did the arrangement
for another lovely composition, “The Butterfly Lovers”.
Particularly
striking from the outset, was the highly developed technique of each of the
players, impeccably groomed and captivating as they interpreted the music, with
dance-like, unison bobs and weaves, serene expressions and soft, graceful
wrists. With evocative titles like “Autumn Meditation at the Dressing Table”, “Riding
Joyfully to Nadam” and “Spring, River, Flowers, Moon, Night”, the exotic
compositions quickly conjured up visions of a different time and place.
Later in the
program, the serene expressions changed for a dramatic item entitled “Sad Songs
on the River Wu”, where the harp-like plucking sounds of the six zithers, were
replaced by drumming effects to evoke a sense of stormy turbulence, demonstrating
the versatility of the instruments, and the virtuosity of the players, led by
Professor Jiang Miao. Professor Miao also featured in another dramatic item, a
duet for two zithers entitled “Defeating the Tiger on the Mountain” which
demonstrated the impressive tonal range of the zithers.
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| Shu-Cheen Yu performing "The Swallow" |
Taking advantage
of the dramatic architecture of the High Court, Shu-Cheen Yu enchanted the
audience with the crystalline purity of her unaccompanied voice as she sang a traditional
song, “The Swallow”, from a balcony, high above the audience. Later she sang
light-hearted traditional Yunnan folk-song, “Herdsman’s Mountain Song”, not too
far removed from “The Lonely Goat-herd” in “The Sound of Music”, which elicited
appreciative chuckles and applause from the audience.
Elsewhere, Nicholas
Ng provided the opportunity to experience the melancholy tones of gourd pipe in
a solo entitled “Flight of the Dragon”, and a luscious solo on a four-stringed
lute, called “The Waves of Qinghai” to round-out a fascinating program of
traditional Chinese music.
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| Members of the China Orient Orchestra performing in the High Court |
Photos by Peter Hislop
This review first published in the digital edition of CITY NEWS on 2nd May 2017
