CHEN YI
CHEN YI
As a Distinguished Professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, a prolific composer and recipient of the prestigious Charles Ives Living Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters (2001-04), Chen Yi* blends Chinese and Western traditions, transcending cultural and musical boundaries. Through doing so, she serves as an ambassador to the arts, creating music that reaches a wide range of audiences, inspiring people with different cultural backgrounds throughout the world. She holds both a BA and MA in music composition from the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, and received her DMA from Columbia University in the City of New York, studying composition with Wu Zuqiang, Chou Wen-chung and Mario Davidovsky. She was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2005.
Chen Yi's music has been commissioned by Yehudi Menuhin, Yo-Yo Ma, Evelyn Glennie, the Cleveland Orchestra, the BBC, the Seattle, Pacific, and Singapore Symphonies, the Brooklyn, New York, and Los Angeles Philharmonic, Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Raschèr Saxophone Quartet and Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke's, and recorded on many labels, including BIS, New Albion, CRI, Teldec, Telarc, Albany, New World, Naxos, Quartz, Delos, Angel, Nimbus, and KIC.
Dr. Chen has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation (1996) and the National Endowment for the Arts (1994), as well as the Lieberson Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters (1996). Other honors include first prize in the Chinese National Composition Competition (1985), the Lili Boulanger Award from the National Women Composers Resource Center (1993), New York University’s Sorel Medal (1996), the CalArts/Alpert Award (1997), a Grammy Award (1999), the University of Texas Eddie Medora King Composition Prize (1999), the Adventurous Programming and Concert Music awards from ASCAP (1999 and 2001, respectively), the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Elise Stoeger Award (2002), the Edgar Snow Memorial Fund’s Friendship Ambassador Award (2002), the Kauffman Award in Artistry/Scholarship from the UMKC Conservatory (2006), and honorary doctorates from Lawrence University in WI (2002), Baldwin-Wallace College in OH (2008), the University of Portland in OR (2009), and The New School University in NYC (2010).
Chen Yi was the first woman to receive a master’s degree in composition in China (June 1986) when she gave an evening concert of her orchestral works in Beijing, performed by the Central Philharmonic of China. She is also the first woman to give an evening multimedia orchestral concert in the US (for orchestra, choir, Chinese traditional instrumental soloists, dancers, and image projection – the Chinese Myths Cantata), which occurred during her 3-year residency with The Women's Philharmonic and Chanticleer (May 1996), supported by Meet The Composer. She has given two more whole evening concerts of her orchestral and choral works presented by the China National Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in 2001 and 2008, and was appointed Changjiang Scholar Visiting Professor at the Beijing Central Conservatory by the China Education Ministry in 2006.
Premieres in 2009 included Septet, a mixed ensemble piece for Prism Saxophone Quartet and Music From China, Prelude and Fugue for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra (MTC/ASOL Music Alive Residency), a duet From Old Peking Folklore for the Music Teachers’ Association of California Friends of Today, and Jing Marimba for the Zeltsman Marimba Festival. New commissions include a wind ensemble work, Dragon Rhyme, premiered by the Hartt School of Music Wind Ensemble at Carnegie Hall, a work for the San Francisco Girls Chorus and Cypress String Quartet, and a work for solo violin (in memory of her violin teacher Lin Yaoji) to be premiered at the China National Concert Hall. Future commissions in 2011 include works for eighth blackbird, the Mid-America Competing Band Directors Association, the American Choral Directors Association, Singapore ACJC, Gustavus College Orchestra (MN), Central Bucks High School Choir (PA), and the Seattle Symphony.
Recent world premieres from 2008 include a song cycle From the Path of Beauty for Chanticleer and the Shanghai String Quartet, Suite from China West for the Metropolitan Wind Symphony, Tunes from My Home for the Newstead Trio, a recorder concerto, Ancient Chinese Beauty, for Michala Petri, Concerto for Reeds for oboe, sheng, and chamber orchestra, Rhyme of Fire for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (commissioned by the BBC Proms and conducted by Leonard Slatkin), Woodwind Quintet No. 3 for the Eastman School of Music, and Prospect Overture for the China National Symphony Orchestra, commissioned by and premiered at the China National Center for the Performing Arts to celebrate the 2009 New Year in Beijing, conducted by Daniel Harding.
Important premieres in 2007 include Three Bagatelles from China West for flute and piano at Carnegie Hall (for the 21st Century project Meet The Composer flute book, Eight Visions), Tibetan Tunes for the New Pacific Trio (Barlow Endowment for Music Composition Commission Award), Looking at the Sea for the Peninsula Women’s Chorus, and China West Suite for Dennis Russell Davies and Maki Namekawa at the Ruhr Piano Festival in Germany. Other world premieres in 2005 and 2006 include Celebration for the Maryland Classic Youth Philharmonic, Spring in Dresden for Mira Wang and Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden (co-commissioned by the NY Phil, premiered in Germany), the 2006 Pulitzer Prize Finalist Si Ji (Four Seasons) for the Cleveland Orchestra (a Roche Commission, premiered at the Lucerne Music Festival in Switzerland, Severance Hall in Cleveland, and Carnegie Hall), Ji-Dong-Nuo, commissioned by Carnegie Hall for Emanuel Ax, Ancient Dances for Wu Man, commissioned by the Walton Arts Center in Arkansas, The Ancient Beauty for Music From China and the Philadelphia Classical Symphony, and Han Figurines, commissioned by Opus 21 and Fontana Chamber Arts.
*CHEN is her family name, Yi is her personal name. CHEN Yi can be referred to as Dr. Chen, Ms. Chen, or Chen Yi.
For more information, please visit Chen Yi’s personal website
Current as of May 2010 |
Suite from China West Wind Symphony (2007) -- 10'
Published: #115-40201M (set of parts)
Published: #115-40201F (score)
Commission Information: The Metropolitan Wind Symphony (Lawrence Isaacson, Music Director) in 2005
Premiere Information: The Metropolitan Wind Symphony on May 18, 2008, conducted by Lewis J. Buckley at the National Heritage Museum in Lexington, MA
• Reviews
Tu for Symphonic Wind Ensemble (2003) -- 13'
2 Fl, 1 Picc., 2 Ob, 2 Bsn, 1 C.Bsn, 2 Cl, 1 B.Cl, 4 Sax (SATB), 4 FH, 3Tp (Bb), 2 Trb, Baritones, 1 B.Trb, 1 Tuba , Hp, 4 Perc., Cb.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: UMKC Conservatory of Music
Premiere Information: The UMKC Wind Symphony, conducted by Sarah Mckoin, April 8, 2004, White Hall, UMKC Conservatory, Kansas City, MO.
Additional Information: Adapted from composer's work Tu for full orchestra (2002)
• Recordings
UMKC Fanfare (2009) -- 4'
Picc. 2Fl. 2Ob. E.H. 2Bsn. Cbsn. 2Cl. B.Cl. 3Sax. 3Tpt. 4F.H. 3Tbn. Euph. Tu. Timp. 3Perc.
Commission Information: Commissioned by UMKC Conservatory
Premiere Information: March 27th, 2009, UMKC Conservatory, CBDNA national conference at the University of Texas-Austin.
Qin Tomb of The Middle Kingdom (Original soundtrack)
Available From Warner Electronic Publishing
Spring Festival for Middle School Band
Available From www.bandquest.org
...as like a raging fire... for Flute, Clarinet, Violin, Cello and Piano (2002) -- 10'
Published: #114-41164
Commission Information: Network For New Music, with a grant from Meet The Composer.
Premiere Information: February 24, 2002, Philadelphia, PA.
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41164P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41164S)
Ancient Dances Cheering, Longing, and Wondering (on three poems by Li Bai) (2005) -- 20'
Pipa, Perc.
Commission Information: The Walton Arts Center, Fayetteville, AR, for pipa
player Wu Man
Premiere Information: Wu Man & Robert Schulz, at Walton Arts Center, AR, Aug. 2005.
Movements:
• Cheering
• Longing
• Wondering
• Reviews
At the Kansas City Chinese New Year Concert for String Quartet in Three Movements (2002) -- 14'
Published: #114-41198
Commission Information: Eastman School of Music, University of Rochester for the Ying Quartet
Premiere Information: No Boundaries concert series, Symphony Space, NY, May 2, 2003
Movements:
• 1. The Talking Fiddle
• 2. Making the Hand-Pulled Noodles
• 3. Blue Dragon Sword Dance
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41198P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41198S)
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41199P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41199S)
Burning for String Quartet (2002) -- 3'
Published: #114-41165
Commission Information: Elements String Quartet
Premiere Information: New York, NY, March 23, 2003
• Recordings
• Reviews
Chinese Ancient Dances for Clarinet and Piano (2004) -- 8'
Cl., Pno.
Published: #114-41262
Commission Information: Co-commissioned by Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Virginia Arts Festival, La Jolla SummerFest, Chamber Music Northwest, supported by Meet The Composer/USA Commissioning Program
Premiere Information: David Shifrin, Clarinet, André-Michel Schub, Piano, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center; at Alice Tully Hall, NYC, May 7, 2004
Movements:
• Hu Xuan Dance
• Ox Tail Dance
• Recordings
Chinese Fables for Erhu, Pipa, Cello and Percussion (2002) -- 13'
Published: #114-41192
Commission Information: Music From China with a grant from Mary Cary Charitable Trust
Premiere Information: MFC's 2002 Premiere Works X11 concert at Merkin
Concert Hall, New York, NY, October 5, 2002
Movements:
• 1. The Fox Profited by the Tiger’s Might
• 2. Master Dong-guo and the Wolf
• 3. The Snipe and the Clam
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41192P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41192S)
Dunhuang Fantasy Concerto for Organ and Chamber Wind Ensemble (1999) -- 12'
Org.; 1-1-2-1; 1-1-1-0; Perc.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: American Guild of Organists for Organ (Kim Marshall) and the Rainier Chamber Winds
Premiere Information: AGO convention in July 4, 2000 in Seattle
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41231)
Feng for Woodwind Quintet (1998) -- 12'
Fl. Ob. Cl. Bsn. Hn.
Published: #114-41052
Commission Information: Award from Chamber Music America (1998/99)
Premiere Information: January 13, 1999. Citywinds, St. John's Presbyterian Church, Berkeley, CA
Movements:
• Introduction
• Rondo
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41052P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41052S)
Fiddle Suite for Huqin* and String Quartet or Quintet (1997) -- 16'
Published: #114-40951
Commission Information: Award from Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University
Premiere Information: Quartet version: Xu Ke, huqin, and Ciompi Quartet, Duke University, February 19, 2000. Quintet version: Xu Ke, huqin, and members of Virginia Symphony, Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival, Norfolk, VA, April 13, 1999
Additional Information: *Huqin is the family name of the Chinese bowing instruments (two-string vertical violins).
Movements:
• Dancing
• Reciting
• Singing
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-40951P)
Full Score - Large (#114-40951S)
Fisherman Song for Violin and Piano (1980) -- 7'
Published: #114-40950
Premiere Information: Ho Hongying, San Francisco, March 10, 1996
• Recordings
From the Old Peking Folklore for Violin and Piano (2009) -- 4'
Published: #114-41373
Commission Information: Commissioned by MTAC
Premiere Information: July 5th, 2009, MTAC summer workshop, San Jose, CA
Han Figurines, The (2006) -- 5'
Violin, Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Double Bass, Piano & Percussion
Published: #114-41304
Commission Information: Opus 21 and Fontana Chamber Arts
Premiere Information: Opus 21at Kerrytown Concert House in Ann Arbor, MI on 5/11/06
Happy Rain on a Spring Night for Flute, Clarinet, Violin, Cello, and Piano (2004) -- 12'
Fl., Cl., Vn., Vc., Pn.
Published: #114-41271
Commission Information: Music From Copland House, with public funds from the Composer’s Commissions program of the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.
Premiere Information: Music From Copland House, Merkin Hall, New York, October 18, 2004.
• Recordings
• Reviews
Joy of Reunion for Oboe, Viola, Cello and Double Bass
Available From Composer
Near Distance (1988) -- 10'
Fl.(A.Fl), Cl.(B.Cl), Perc., Pno, Vln., Vcl.
Published: #114-40744
Premiere Information: Chamber Ensemble in Sound and Silence, Krakow, Poland, January 8, 1989
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-40744P)
Full Score - Large (#114-40744S)
Night Thoughts for Flute, Cello, and Piano (2004) -- 8'
Fl., Vc., Pn.
Published: #114-41248
Commission Information: Co-commissioned by Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Virginia Arts Festival, La Jolla SummerFest, Chamber Music Northwest, supported by Meet The Composer/USA Commissioning Program
Premiere Information: April 28, 2004. Deborah Cross, Flute, Keith Robinson, Cello, André-Michel Schub, Piano, at the Virginia Arts Festival, Norfolk, VA
• Recordings
Ning Trio for Violin, Cello and Pipa (2001) -- 15'
Published: #114-41133
Commission Information: Chamber Music Society of Minnesota with a grant from Barlow Endowment for Music Composition at Brigham Young University, and The Hoeschler Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation
Premiere Information: May 30, 2001. Young-Nam Kim, Violin, Yo-Yo Ma, Cello, Wu Man, Pipa. Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, St. Paul, MN
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41133P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41133S)
Pipa Rhyme for Pipa and 14 Players
Available From Composer
Qi for Flute, Cello, Piano and Percussion (1996-97) -- 12'
Published: #114-40901
Commission Information: Award from Meet The Composer
Premiere Information: Los Angeles Philharmonic, March 3, 1997; New York New Music Consort, March 10, 1997; San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, March 17, 1997
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-40901P)
Full Score - Large (#114-40901S)
Romance and Dance for Violin and Piano (1999) -- 9'
Published: #114-41080
Additional Information: Orchestral version available on rental from Theodore Presser Company
• Recordings
• Reviews
Romance of Hsiao and Ch’in for Cello and Piano (1998) -- 5'
Published: #114-41081
Additional Information: Orchestral version available on rental from Theodore Presser Company
• Recordings
Septet for Erhu, Pipa, Percussion and Saxophone Quartet (2008) -- 14'
Erhu, Pipa, Percussion, Saxophone Quartet
Commission Information: Commissioned by Music From China and Prism Quartet with a grant from NYSCA
Premiere Information: 27th February, 2009; PRISM Saxophone Quartet and Music From China. Settlement Music School, Philadelphia, PA and 28th February at Merkin Concert Hall, New York.
• Recordings
• Reviews
Shuo for String Quartet
Published: #416-41210Q
Additional Information: Also available for String Orchestra.
Song in Winter Quartet For Flute, Zheng, Piano and Percussion
Published: #114-40947
Commission Information: Alea III
Premiere Information: Alea III, Boston University, February 2, 1994
• Recordings
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-40947P)
Full Score - Large (#114-40947S)
Song in Winter Trio for Harpsichord, Di, Zheng (1993) -- 8'
Published: #114-41103
Commission Information: Pro Musicis
Premiere Information: Joyce Lindorff and Music From China, New York, NY, March 23, 1994
• Recordings
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41103P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41103S)
Sound of The Five for Cello and String Quartet (1998) -- 16’
Published: #114-41053
Commission Information: Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York
Premiere Information: Mimi Hwang and the Ying Quartet, New York, November 15, 1998
Movements:
• Echoes of the Set Bells
• Flower Drums in Dance
• Lusheng Ensemble
• Romance of Hsiao & Ch’in
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41053P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41053S)
Sparkle Octet (1992) -- 11' 30"
Fl.(Picc.), Cl.(E-flat.), 2Perc., Pno., Vln., Vcl., Cb.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Grant from the Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust
Premiere Information: New Music Consort; Claire Heldrich, conductor, New York, October 21, 1992
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41156)
Suite for Cello and Chamber Winds (2004) -- 20'
Cello Solo, 1111, 1110, Perc.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: UMKC Conservatory of Music. Adapted from composer's four movement work Sound of the Five for cello and string quartet (1998).
Premiere Information: The UMKC Wind Symphony, cello solo by Carter Enyeart, conducted by Sarah Mckoin, April 26, 2005, White Hall, UMKC Conservatory, Kansas City, MO.
Three Bagatelles from China West (2006) -- 10'
Flute and Piano, or 2 Flutes, or Guanzi and Sheng
Published: #114-41397 (Flute and Piano)
Published: #414-41193B (Two Flutes)
Commission Information: Meet The Composer’s Flute Book for the 21st Century, for Mayra Martin, and dedicated to Gilbert Kaplan
Premiere Information: by Marya Martin and Colette Valentine at Weill Recital Hall on 3/29/07, NYC
Additional Information: The version for Guanzi and Sheng was premiered by Bao Jian and Hu Jianbing, at Beijing Modern at the Central Conservatory of Music on 5/27/07, Beijing
• Recordings
Tibetan Tunes (2007) -- 10'
Violin, Cello and Piano
Published: #114-41335
Commission Information: Barlow Endowment for Music Composition, for the New Pacific Trio
Premiere Information: by the New Pacific Trio (Igor Veligan, Nina Flyer, Sonia Leong) at Faye Spanos Concert Hall, University of the Pacific, Stockton, on 1/27/07, CA
• Recordings
• Reviews
Tunes from My Home (2007) -- 20'
Violin, Cello and Piano
Commission Information: Pennsylvania Academy of Music, PA for Newstead Trio
Premiere Information: Newstead Trio (Michael Jamanis, Sara Male and Xun Pan) at Pennsylvania Academy of Music, Lancaster, PA, on 6/11/08
Additional Information: Published: Full Score (114-41349S)
Set of Parts (114-41349P)
Woodwind Quintet (1987) -- 9'
Fl., Ob., Cl., Bsn., Hn.
Published: #114-40745
Premiere Information: The Composers Conference Ensemble; Efrain Guigui, conductor, Wellesley, MA, August 5, 1987
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-40745P)
Full Score - Large (#114-40745S)
Woodwind Quintet No. 3 (2008) -- 13'
Fl. Ob. Cl. Bsn. Hn.
Published: #114-41358
Commission Information: Eastman School of Music
Premiere Information: by the Antara Winds at the Women in Music Festival, Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY, on 9/20/2008
Wu Yu for Chamber Ensemble (6 Players) (2002) -- 14'
Flute, Clarinet/Bass Clarinet, Bassoon, Violin, Cello, Percussion
Published: #114-41166
Commission Information: Boston Musica Viva
Premiere Information: March 15, 2002, in Boston, conducted by Richard Pittman
• Recordings
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41166P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41166S)
Wu Yu for Chamber Ensemble (7 Players)
Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello, Contrabass
Published: #114-41167
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41167P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41167S)
Xian Shi for Viola, Piano and Percussion
Published: #114-41162
Available Separately:Set of parts (#114-41162P)
Full Score - Large (#114-41162S)
Yangko (2005) -- 5'
Vn., 2 Perc.
Published: #114-41272
Commission Information: Philadelphia Music Project for Network for New
Music’s dance concert
Premiere Information: by Network for New Music at ArtsBank in
Philadelphia, PA, 3/8&9/05.
Additional Information: adapted from the 2nd movement of Chinese Folk Dance Suite
• Recordings
• Reviews
Ancient Beauty, The (2006) -- 10'
Dizi (dbl. Xun), Erhu, Pipa, Zheng; Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Commissioned by the Philadelphia Classical Symphony and Music From China
Premiere Information: 21st, 23rd April, 2006. Music From China, Philadelphia Classical Symphony, conducted by Karl Middleman.
Montgomery County Community College, Blue Bell, PA (21st), Holy Trinity Church, Rittenhouse Square,
Philadelphia, PA (23rd).
Additional Information: I The Bronze Taotie
II The Clay Figurines
Fiddle Suite for Huqin and Chinese traditional instrumental orchestra (1997/2008) -- 16'
Commission Information: Municipal Chinese Traditional Instrumental Orchestra
Premiere Information: Xu Ke and the Taipei Chinese Orchestra, conducted by Shao En, on 3/29/08, Taiwan
Additional Information: (adapted from Fiddle Suite for Huqin and Orchestra)
Overture for Chinese Traditional Instrumental Orchestra
Commission Information: Hong Kong Chinese Traditional Instrumental Orchestra in 1989
Available From Composer
Overture No. 2 for Chinese Traditional Instrumental Orchestra
Commission Information: Hong Kong Chinese Traditional Instrumental Orchestra in 1990.
Available From Composer
Suite Quintet for Pipa, Di, Yangqin, Sanxian, Erhu (3 movements)
Available From Composer
The Tide for Xun, Yangqin, Pipa, Zheng, Perc, Gaohu, Erhu
Available From Composer
Xie Zi for Two Di, Sheng, Liuqin, Zheng, Sanxian
Available From Composer
Ba Ban for Solo Piano
Published: #110-41760
• Recordings
Duo Ye for Piano Solo (1984) -- 6'
Published: #110-40728
Premiere Information: Chen Min, Beijing, 1986
Additional Information: First prize, 4th China National Composition Competition, China, 1985
Orchestral version available on rental from Theodore Presser Company
• Recordings
Guessing for Piano (1989) -- 5'
Published: #110-40727
Commission Information: Award from Renee B. Fisher Youth Piano Competition
Premiere Information: Piano Competition, Connecticut, June 3, 1990
Ji-Dong-Nuo (2005) -- 5'
Pno.
Published: #110-41767
Commission Information: Carnegie Hall
Premiere Information: Emanuel Ax, at Birmingham Symphony Hall, Birmingham, UK, November 13, 2005
• Recordings
Jing Marimba (2009) -- 5'
Solo Marimba
Published: #114-41393
Premiere Information: July 5, 2009, Gordon Stout, Marimba. Zeltsman Marimba Festival, Lawrence University, Appleton, WI
• Recordings
Monologue (Impressions on The True Story of Ah Q) for B-flat Clarinet (1993) -- 5'
Published: #114-40948
Commission Information: Inter-Artes
Premiere Information: Inter-Artes, London, April 18, 1993
• Recordings
The Points for Pipa (1991) -- 9'
Published: #114-40946
Premiere Information: Wu Man, New York, October 17, 1991
Additional Information: The Chinese title for this work is "Dian."
The work is also known as "The Spirit of Calligraphy."
• Recordings
• Reviews
Two Chinese Bagatelles for Piano Solo
Published: #110-40726
Additional Information: For more information, see individual listings for movements.
Movements:
• Small Beijing Gong (1min.)
• Yu Diao (2min.)
Ancient Chinese Beauty, The for Recorders and String Orchestra (2008) -- 15'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Danish recorder master Michala Petri
Premiere Information: Premiere Information: Michala Petri and string orchestra, conducted by Shen Hao, Beijing, 4/4/08
• Recordings
Ba Yin (the Eight Sounds) for Saxophone Quartet and String Orchestra (2001) -- 19'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Stuttgart Kammerorchester and the Rascher Sax Quartet
Premiere Information: Stuttgart Kammerorchester and the Rascher Sax Quartet, Dennis Russell Davies, conductor, October 27, 2001, Stuttgart, Germany
Movements:
• Praying for Rain
• Shifan Gong-and-drum
• Song of the Chu
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41253)
Full Score - Large (#416-41264)
Ballad, Dance and Fantasy for Cello and Orchestra (2003) -- 20'
Solo Cello; 3(dbl. Picc.) 3(E.H.) 3(B.Cl.) 3(Cbsn.) - 4 3 3 1; Timp. 3Perc. Hp. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Pacific Symphony, for the Chinese American Composers Festival
Premiere Information: March 10th, 2004. Yo-Yo Ma, Cello, Pacific Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Carl St. Clair, Santa Ana, California.
Movements:
• 1. Ballad of the Earth
• 2. Dance on the Silk Road
• 3. Fantasy for the Global Village
• Reviews
Caramoor's Summer for Chamber Orchestra (2003) -- 13'
2(2dbl.Picc.) 2 2 2 - 2 1 1 0; Timp.(dbl. Small Bell, Tam-tam) 2Perc. Hp. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: July 27th, 2003. Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Caramoor International Music Festival, conducted by Peter Oundjian, Katonah, NY
Premiere Information: July 27, 2003, Orchestra of St. Luke's, Peter Oundjian, conductor, Caramoor International Music Festival, Katonah, NY
Celebration for Orchestra (2005) -- 5'
2222, 2221, T, 2 Perc. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Maryland Classic Youth Philharmonic (Olivia W. Gutoff, Artistic Director and Conductor), to celebrate the opening of The Music and Arts Education Center at Strathmore, Rockville, MD.
Premiere Information: MCYP at Strathmore Concert Hall, MD, 3/12/05,
Cond. by Ms. Gutoff.
Chinese Folk Dance Suite for Violin and Orchestra (2000) -- 19'
Violin Solo, 2-2-2-2; 4-2-3-0; 3 Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Award from the Koussevitzky Foundation
Premiere Information: Terrie Baune and the Women's Philharmonic, Apo Hsu, conductor, March 10, 2001, San Francisco, CA
Movements:
• 1. Lion Dance
• 2. YangKo
• 3. Mugam
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41252)
Full Score - Large (#416-41252L)
Concerto for Reeds for Oboe, Sheng and Chamber Orchestra (2008) -- 14'
Solo Oboe, Solo Sheng; 1 1 2 1 - 1 1 1 0; Perc. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Commissioned Swiss Culture Ministry
Premiere Information: October 28th, 2008, China National Symphony, Beijing Concert Hall, Beijing, China
Duo Ye for Chamber Orchestra (1985) -- 7'
1-1-2(B-flat, E-flat)-1; 1-0-0-0; Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: Beijing Symphony Orchestra; Lan Shui, conductor, Beijing, 1986
• Recordings
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41204)
Duo Ye, No. 2 for Full Orchestra (1987) -- 8'
3(Picc.)-3(E.Hn.)-3(B.Cl.)-3(Cbsn.); 4-3-3-1; Tpt., 3 Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China
Premiere Information: Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China; Zuohuang Chen, conductor, New York, October 11, 1987
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41153)
Eleanor's Gift For Solo Cello And Orchestra -- 15'
Solo Cello; 2 2 2 2 - 2 2 1 0; 3Perc.(incl.Timp) Hp. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: 10th December, 1998. Paul Tobias, Cello, The Women’s Philharmonic, conducted by Apo Hsu, San Francisco, CA
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Solo Part with Piano Reduction (#114-41214)
Full Score - Large (#416-41203)
Fiddle Suite for Huqin and Orchestra (1997) -- 20'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Additional Information: *Huqin is the family name of the Chinese bowing instruments (two-string vertical violins).
Fiddle Suite for Huqin* and String Orchestra (1997) -- 16'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: Xu Ke, huqin, and Japan Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Yuzo Toyama, conductor, April 19, 1998, Suntory Hall, Tokyo, Japan
Additional Information: *Huqin is the family name of the Chinese bowing instruments (two-string vertical violins).
Movements:
• Dancing
• Reciting
• Singing
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41202)
Ge Xu (Antiphony) (1994) -- 8'
2(Picc.)-2-2-2; 4-2-3-0; Hp., Tpt., 2 Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Meet The Composer
Premiere Information: The Women's Philharmonic; JoAnn Falletta, conductor, Berkeley, CA, January 28, 1995
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41205)
Momentum for Orchestra (1998) -- 10'
3-3-3-3; 4-3-3-1; Hp., 4Perc., Str
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: The Peabody Conservatory
Premiere Information: Peabody Symphony Orchestra, Teri Murai, conductor, Lincoln Center debut, New York, May 2, 1999
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41184)
Overture for Youth Orchestra (2008) -- 9'
2 2 2 2 - 4 2 3 0; Timp. 3Perc. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Commissioned by Omaha Area Youth Orchestra for its 50th anniversary celebration
Premiere Information: April 26th 2009, Omaha, NE
Percussion Concerto (1998) -- 18'
3-3-3-3; 4-3-3-1; 3Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Singapore Symphony Orchestra
Premiere Information: Singapore Symphony Orchestra, La Shui, conductor, Evelyn Glennie, percussion, March 8, 1999, Singapore
Movements:
• Prelude to Water Tune
• Speedy Wind
• The Night Deepens
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Piano Reduction (#114-41050)
Full Score - Study (#416-41207)
Full Score - Large (#416-41207L)
Piano Concerto (1992) -- 16'
Pno., 3(Picc.)-3(E.Hn.)-3(B.Cl.)-3(Cbsn.); 4-3-3-1; Tpt., 3Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Brooklyn Philharmonic
Premiere Information: Brooklyn Philharmonic, Dennis Russell Davies, conductor, Margaret Leng Tan, piano, Brooklyn, NY, October 14, 1994
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41236)
Prelude and Fugue (2009) -- 14'
2 2 2 2 - 2 2 0 0; Perc. Pno. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Commissioned by Meet The Composer/League of American Orhcestras Music Alive! for the St Paul Chamber Orchestra
Premiere Information: April 30th, 2009, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, St. Paul, MN
• Reviews
Prospect Overture (2008) -- 9'
3 3(E.H.) 3(B.Cl.) 3(Cbsn.) - 4 3 3 1; Timp. Perc. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Commissioned by China National Center for the Performing Arts to celebrate 2009 New Year
Premiere Information: December 31st, 2008, China National Symphony, Beijing, China
Rhyme of Fire for Orchestra (2008) -- 15'
3(Picc.) 3(E.H.) 3(B.Cl.) 3(Cbsn.) – 4 3(inC) 3(B.Tbn.) 1; Timp. 4Perc. Str. Perc. I: Xylophone and Glockenspiel Perc. II: Tom-Tom and Bass Drum Perc. III: Snare Drum, Claves, and Small Beijing Opera Gong Perc. IV: Suspended Cymbal, Triangle, and Tam-Tam
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: BBC Proms
Premiere Information: 8th August, 2008. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin, BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London.
Additional Information: Premiered on the opening day of the Beijing Olympics, under the title Olympic Fire
• Reviews
Romance and Dance for Two Violins and String Orchestra (1998) -- 9'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, Benjamin Hudson and Wolfgang Kussmaul (violin soli), Dennis Russell Davies, conductor, December 12, 1998, Stuttgart, Germany
Movements:
• Dance (adapted from Dancing, the third mvt. of Fiddle Suite)
• Romance of Hsiao & Ch’in
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41208)
Solo Part (#416-41208P)
Romance of Hsiao and Ch'in for Two Violins and String Orchestra (1995) -- 5'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: Shlomo Mintz and Elmar Oliveira w/Orchestra of St. Luke's, Yehudi Menuhin, conductor, at A Benefit Tribute to Yehudi Menuhin, Lincoln Center Festival, New York, August 11, 1996
Additional Information: 1st movement of "Romance and Dance"
• Recordings
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41209)
Shuo for String Orchestra (1994) -- 8'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: San Jose Chamber Orchestra
Premiere Information: San Jose Chamber Orchestra; Barbara Day Turner, conductor, San Jose, January 22, 1995
Additional Information: Also available for String Quartet.
• Recordings
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41210)
Si Ji (Four Seasons) for Orchestra (2005) -- 15'
4(Picc.) 4(E.H.) 4(B.Cl.) 4(Cbsn.) - 4 3 3(B.Tbn.) 1; Timp.(d.Perc.) 4Perc. Hp. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Roche, Lucerne Music Festival, Carnegie Hall, The Cleveland Orchestra
Premiere Information: The Cleveland Orchestra, Franz Welser-Most,
conductor; Aug. 26, 2005 at Lucerne Music Festival, Switzerland; Oct. 13, 2005 at Severance Hall, Cleveland, OH; Oct. 17, 2005 at Carnegie Hall, NY.
Additional Information: View the Roche Commission's book on Si Ji
• Reviews
Spring in Dresden for Violin and Orchestra (2005) -- 20'
2222, 4231, Hp, 3 Perc. Solo Vn, Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Saxon State Orchestra Dresden and The New York
Philharmonic, supported by Friends of Dresden Music Foundation.
Premiere Information: Mira Zheng-rong Wang, violin solist, Ivan Fischer,
conductor, Oct. 9, 2005, to celebrate the reopen of Frauenkirche (the Lady's Church) at the Semperoper, Dresden, Germany.
Sprout for String Orchestra (1986) -- 7'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China; Lan Shui, conductor, Beijing, May 31, 1986
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41152)
Symphony 'Humen 1839' (2009) -- 29'
3(Picc.) 3(E.H.) 3(B.Cl.) 3(Cbsn.) – 4 3 3(B.Tbn.) 1; Timp. 3Perc. Pno./Cel. Hp. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Commissioned by the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, to commemorate the 170th anniversary of the Destroying Opium Campaign in Humen, Guangdong in 1839
Premiere Information: 13th September 2009. Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Yu Long; Xinghai Concert Hall, Guangzhou, China
Additional Information: co-composed with Zhou Long
Symphony No. 1
Available From Composer• Recordings
Symphony No. 2 (1993) -- 18'
3-3(E.Hn.)-3(B.Cl.)-3(Cbsn.); 4-3-3-1; Hp., Tpt., 3Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Women's Philharmonic
Premiere Information: Women's Philharmonic; JoAnn Falletta, conductor, San Francisco, January 29, 1994
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41157)
Symphony No. 3 (2003) -- 20'
3(Picc.) 3(E.H.) 3(B.Cl.) 3(Cbsn.) - 4 3 3 1: Timp. 3Perc. Hp. Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Seattle Symphony, for its centennial season celebration, supported by Wah & May Lui of Seattle
Premiere Information: Seattle Symphony, Gerard Schwarz, conductor; March 18, 2004; Seattle, WA
Movements:
• 1. The Dragon Culture
• 2. The Melting Pot
• 3. Dreaming
• Reviews
The Golden Flute Concerto for Flute and Orchestra (1997) -- 15'
2-2-2-2; 4-2-3-0; Hp., Tpt., 2Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, USA
Premiere Information: Donna Orbovich and the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, MN, Yong-yan Hu, Conductor, November 8, 1997
• Reviews
Available Separately:Solo Part (#114-40949)
Full Score - Study (#416-41206)
The Linear (1994) -- 15'
2(Picc.)-2-2-2; 4-3-3-1; Hp., Tpt., 4 Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Oakland Youth Orchestra
Premiere Information: Oakland Youth Orchestra; Wes Kenney, conductor, Oakland, CA, June 3, 1995
Tu for Orchestra (2002) -- 13'
3(Picc.)-3(E.Hn.)-3(B.Cl.)-3(Cbsn.); 4-3-3-1; Hp., Tp., 3Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: The Women’s Philharmonic and the American Composers Orchestra with a grant provided by NEA in 2000.
Premiere Information: The Women’s Philharmonic, “The American Women
Masters Gala Concert”, conducted by Anne Manson, March 7. 2004, Herbst Theater, San
Francisco, CA.
Additional Information: Also arranged for symphonic wind ensemble.
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Study (#416-41269)
Xian Shi Concerto for Viola and Orchestra (1983) -- 14'
Vla.; 2(Picc)-2-2-2; 4-3-2-0; Tpt., 2Perc., Str.
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Premiere Information: China Film Studio Symphony; Yao Guanrong, conductor, Beijing, 1983
• Recordings
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41211)
Solo Part (#416-41211P)
A Horseherd's Mountain Song for Mixed Chorus, a cap. (2003) -- 3'
Published: #312-41832)
A Set of Chinese Folk Songs for Children's SA(T) Chorus and Strings -- 25'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Meet The Composer
Premiere Information: Aptos & Jordan Middle Schools, Palo Alto, Albany & Lick-Wilmerding High Schools, San Francisco Bay area, May, 1994
Movements:
• Awariguli
• Diu Diu Deng
• Fengyan Song
• Guessing
• Jasmine Flower
• Mayila
• Mountain Song and Dancing Tune
• Riding On a Mule
• The Flowing Stream
• Thinking of My Darling
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#312-41682R)
A Set of Chinese Folk Songs for Men's Choir (TTBB) a cappella (1994) -- 17'
Published: #312-41682
Commission Information: Meet The Composer
Premiere Information: Chanticleer, San Francisco, April 24, 1994
Additional Information: 10 copies.
Movements:
• Awariguli
• Diu Diu Deng
• Fengyan Song
• Guessing
• Jasmine Flower
• Mayila
• Mountain Song and Dancing Tune
• Riding On a Mule
• The Flowing Stream
• Thinking of My Darling
• Recordings
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#312-41682S)
Movements:
• Fengyan Song
• Guessing
• The Flowing Stream
• Thinking of My Darling
Movements:
• Awariguli
• Jasmine Flower
• Mayila
• Riding On a Mule
Movements:
• Diu Diu Deng
• Mountain Song and Dancing Tune
A Single Bamboo Can Easily Bend for Mixed Chorus, a cappella (2003) -- 3'
Published: #312-41833
Arirang Korean folk song arrangement (1994) -- 3'
Published: #312-41747
Premiere Information: Chanticleer, Asian tour, 1995-96
As In A Dream Two Songs for Soprano, Pipa and Zheng (1988) -- 7'
Published: #111-40185
Premiere Information: October 9, 1994. Music From China, Merkin Concert Hall at the Abraham Goodman House, new York.
• Recordings
As in a Dream Two Songs for Soprano, Violin, and Cello (1988) -- 7'
Published: #111-40141
Commission Information: Rao Lan, Soprano and Inoue Chamber Ensemble
Premiere Information: Inoue Chamber Ensemble, New York, October 17, 1988
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#111-40141S)
Bright Moonlight (2000) -- 5'
Mz., Pn.
Published: #111-40190
Commission Information: New York Festival of Song, Meet The Composer and ASCAP
Premiere Information: Theodora Hanslowe and Michael Barrett, at Kaye Playhouse at Hunter , New York, NY, March 22, 2001
Capriccio for Mixed Choir, Organ and Solo Percussion (2001) -- 4'
Published: #312-41813
Premiere Information: March 2, 2002, Evelyn Glennie and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Craig Jessop, conductor, at the Olympic Arts Festival to celebrate the Paralympic Games, Salt Lake City, UT
Additional Information: Adapted from "KC Capriccio"
Available Separately:Solo Part (#312-41813P)
Chinese Mountain Songs for Women's Choir (2001) -- 10'
Published: #312-41809
Commission Information: Vocal ensemble Kitka with a grant from NEA and Rockefeller Foundation
Premiere Information: June 17, 2001, San Francisco, CA
Movements:
• A Ma Lei A Ho
• Ga Da Mei Lin
• Gathering in the Naked Oats
• Mt. Wuzhi
• When Will the Scholartree Blossom?
Chinese Myths Cantata for Male Choir and Orchestra (1996) -- 34'
12 singers; 2-2-2-2; 4-2-3-0; 4Pno., Str., 4 Chinese Instruments
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: Meet The Composer
Premiere Information: Chanticleer, The Women's Philharmonic; JoAnn Falletta, conductor, San Francisco, June 14, 1996
Movements:
• Nu Wa Creates Human Beings
• Pan Gu Creates Heaven and Earth
• Weaving Maid and Cowherd
• Recordings
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#412-41078)
Chinese Poems for Children's Chorus in Six Levels (1999) -- 9'
Published: #312-41783
Commission Information: San Francisco Girls Chorus
Premiere Information: May 24, 1999, Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco, Sharon Paul, conductor
• Recordings
• Reviews
Available Separately:Errata Sheet (#312-41783E)
From the Path of Beauty for Mixed choir and String Quartet (2008) -- 35'
Commission Information: Chanticleer (30th anniversary) and Shanghai Quartet (25th anniversary)
Premiere Information: Chanticleer and the Shanghai Quartet at San Francisco Conservatory, on 3/13/08, CA
Additional Information: with support from the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. and Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, and dedicated to the memory of former San Francisco Deputy Mayor Peter Henschel and former San Francisco Supervisor Gordon Lau, in honoring their great contribution to the friendship between San Francisco-Shanghai Sister Cities
• Reviews
KC Capriccio for Wind Ensemble and Mixed Chorus (2000) -- 5'
Available from the Presser Rental Library
Commission Information: UMKC Conservatory of Music
Premiere Information: September 28, 2000, Kansas City, MO, UMKC Conservatory Wind Ensemble and the Heritage Chorale, Sarah McKoin, conductor
Available Separately:Full Score - Large (#416-41273)
Know You How Many Petals Falling for Mixed Choir (2001) -- 4'
Published: #312-41814
Commission Information: 6th World Symposium on Choral Music
Premiere Information: August 11, 2002, Elmer Iseler Singers, MN
Additional Information: Sung in English
Lament of the Twin Stars arranged from Cantonese Music for Male Choir
Available From Composer
Landscape for Mixed Choir, a cappella (2003) -- 3'
Published: #312-41830
Commission Information: ACFEA Tour Consultants for Kansas City Chorale
Premiere Information: June 7, 2003, Kansas City Chorale, Chorus America National Convention, Kansas City, MO
• Reviews
Looking at the Sea for Women's Choir (2006) -- 4'30"
Commission Information: The Patricia Hennings New Music Fund for the Peninsula Women’s Chorus, on the occasion of its 40th anniversary, Martin Benvenuto, Artistic Director
Premiere Information: The Peninsula Women’s Chorus, Conducted by Martin Benvenuto, on 3/17/07 in Menlo Park, CA
Meditation Two Songs for Mezzo-Soprano and Piano
Published: #111-40203
Sakura, Sakura Japanese folk song arrangement (1994) -- 1'
Published: #312-41748
Premiere Information: Chanticleer, Asian tour, 1995-96
• Recordings
Shady Grove American folk song arrangement for SATB Choir (2001) -- 2'
SATB
Published: #312-41841
Spring Dreams for SATB Chorus (1997) -- 5'
Published: #312-41745
Commission Information: Ithaca College
Premiere Information: Ithaca College Chorus, Ithaca, NY, November 15, 1997
• Reviews
Tang Poems Cantata for Men's Chorus a cappella -- 12'
Published: #312-41694
Commission Information: Meet The Composer
Premiere Information: Chanticleer, New York, NY, October, 1995
Additional Information: See also:
Original version for SATB Chorus and Chamber Orchestra
Second movement also available separately, for Men's Choir, and for SATB Chorus.
• Recordings
Tang Poems for SATB Chorus and Chamber Orchestra
Available from the Presser Rental Library
The West Lake (2003) -- 5'
SATB, a cappella
Published: #312-41831
Commission Information: Chicago a cappella, to celebrate its 10th anniversary
Premiere Information: Chicago a cappella, Johnathan Miller, conductor, September 9, 2003, Chicago, IL
• Recordings
To the New Millennium for Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano and Mixed Choir (2001) -- 10'
Published: #312-41818
Commission Information: Miami University through the project Music at Miami for the Millennium, funded by a Miami University President's Academic Enrichment Award.
Premiere Information: April 14, 2002. Audrey Luna, Soprano, Muri Opatz-Muni, Mezzo-soprano, Chamber Singers and Collegiate Chorale of Miami University, conducted by William Bausano, Oxford, OH.
Additional Information: Texts by Du Fu, Wang Wei and Cao Cao.
Movements:
• Happy Rain on a Spring Night
• Looking at the Sea
• Love Seeds
• Reviews
Two Chinese Folk Songs -- 4'
Published: #312-41855
Premiere Information: 16th March, 2008, Cornell University Chorus and Glee Club, conducted by Scott Tucker, Beida Centenary Hall, Peking University, Beijing, China
Additional Information: co-arranged with Steven Stucky
Two Chinese Folk Songs (arrangement for mixed chorus) (2003) -- 6'
Commission Information: Singapore Youth Choir, for its 40th anniversary
Premiere Information: Singapore Youth Choir, led by Jennifer Tham in July, 2004, Singapore
Available From Composer
Written on a Rainy Night for SATB Chorus
Additional Information: Published: 312-41837
Xuan for Mixed Choir (2001) -- 5'
Published: #312-41808
Commission Information: Ithaca College School of Music
Premiere Information: November 19, 2001, Ithaca, NY
 | Tu for Symphonic Wind Ensemble |
Ilkhom-XX
Continuum, performed at the International Festival of Contemporary Music
| Qi for Flute, Cello, Piano and Percussion |
Delos Delos 3299:
Huaxia Contemporary Music Chinese Chamber Ensemble, soloist Chen Yi-Han
Cavalli Records LC05724:
Ensemble Roter Phoenix (Lan Rao, Soprano; Fengxia Xu-Wagner, Guzheng; Micaela Gelius, Piano)
| Wu Yu for Chamber Ensemble (6 Players) |
China Record Corporation AL-57:
Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China, Lan Shui, conductor
| Shuo for String Orchestra |
| Xian Shi Concerto for Viola and Orchestra |
China Record Corporation AL-57:
Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China, En Shao, conductor, Liu Lizhou, viola
| Septet for Erhu, Pipa, Percussion and Saxophone Quartet |
China Record Corporation AL-57:
Central Philharmonic Orchestra of china, Lan Shui, conductor
BIS 1352: Momentum
Singapore Symphony/Lan Shui/Cond.; Yi-Jia Susanne Hou, Cho-Liang Lin/Violins; Kimberly Marshall/Organ
BIS 1352: Momentum
Singapore Symphony, Lan Shui, conductor
BIS 1352: Momentum
Singapore Symphony/Lan Shui/Cond.; Yi-Jia Susanne Hou, Cho-Liang Lin/Violins
BIS 1352: Momentum
Singapore Symphony/Lan Shui/Cond.; Kimberly Marshall/Organ
BIS 1352: Momentum
Singapore Symphony/Lan Shui/Cond.; Yi-Jia Susanne Hou, Cho-Liang Lin/Violins
| TU for Orchestra |
Bis 1352: Momentum
Singapore Symphony/Lan Shui/Cond.; Yi-Jia Susanne Hou, Cho-Liang Lin/Violins; Kimberly Marshall/Organ
"This is a truly remarkable disc! It contains of seven riveting, wholly absorbing pieces by a composer whose music I now plan to monitor as closely as possible…The opening piece Sparkle is a dazzler. It leaps out at the listener, maintaining its initial driving motor rhythms against splashes of color and sudden narrative turns. Song in Winter (joining Western harpsichord with Chinese instruments) and Near Distance for large ensemble offer a - highly impressive command of timbral resources. Chen Yi has a spectacular gift for instrumentation, and this collection of chamber pieces only whets the appetite for a sampling of her "larger" music."-Elliott Schwartz, 20th Century Music"Her voice is extraordinary, her gifts remarkable, and to have the honor of a new work from this great composer is very meaningful to me."-Gerard Schwarz"Chen Ye is a Chinese composer with experience in both Chinese traditional music and European Art Music. She smashes the two worlds together in a way that reveals deep knowledge of both— an unusual skill."-American Record Guide"…It's easy to understand how she has achieved so much success; these works are loaded with unusual orchestral colors, vibrant rhythms, and tart melodies, primarily inspired by Chinese folk and court musics…the off-kilter, often jolting rhythms are tempered with tranquil episodes, giving Chen's music an engaging drama and satisfying balance."-Art Lange, Fanfare"Chen Yi is a truly gifted composer of wide ranging expressiveness, with a distinctive voice…there's no question that Chen has something to say and abundant means at her disposal with which to say it."-David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com"…now one of the most distinctive composers of her generation… simply being in the presence of this hardy woman…made this evening the standout event in a full week of concertgoing in New York."-Anthony Tommasini, New York Times"Chen Yi is a brilliant composer and inspired teacher whose great talent has enriched the culture of her adopted country."-"In her compositions, Chen Yi tries to distill from Chinese and Western traditional music the essential character and spirit and to develop materials abstractly in accordance with new concepts. Duo Ye No. 2, Ge Xu (Antiphony), Piano Concerto and Second Symphony (for full orchestra) thoughtfully combine the Western orchestral idiom with traditional Eastern pentatonic tonalities. As the brass opening of Duo Ye, No. 2 demonstrates, Chen is a bold (and sometimes humorous) composer who orchestrates intelligently and effectively. Her octet Sparkle is a refreshing expression of glittering passion with magical textures, and the sextet Near Distance is a meditation on ancient culture and modern civilization, very skillfully drawing together the music of East and West. That, and the desire to create 'real music' for society and future generations, is her main goal."-Contemporary Composers"The music that emerges from the melange of influences is extraordinarily rich in color and dramatic power, with a canny use of Chinese materials that makes them easily accessible to the Western listener"-San Francisco Chronicle"I want to speak in a natural way in my own language, and that is a combination of everything I have learned from the past -- what I learned in the conservatory, and what I learned in the field collecting folk songs. It's all a source for my imagination… If you just put them together as Eastern and Western, then it sounds artificial -- they don't sound together. But if you can merge them in your blood, then they sound natural together."-Chen Yi, San Francisco Chronicle"Ms. Chen's large body of work, in which Chinese and Western influences and instrumentation mingle freely and colorfully."-Allan Kozinn, The New York Times"Chen's compositional style distils Chinese and Western traditional music to form abstract canvases of sound. But her works are often marked by bold wit and striking orchestration."-Gramophone Online News"Her work has a passion, control, colour and an originality that is entirely convincing. Chen Yi's music is suffused with a wonderful elasticity within a world of constant tension."-Ezra Laderman"She is both a musician - and she is a wonderful composer…I love when somebody writes in the way that you feel is instrumentally good…The other thing that I really love about Chen Yi is that she's really incredibly well grounded in a number of different traditions. She has great chops for writing contemporary music. She also knows many traditional Chinese styles."-Yo-Yo Ma (quoted in an interview with John Soltes), The Daily Targum (Rutgers University)"Chen's harmonic language is surprisingly flexible. While her music generally inhabits a world that is tonal if not always triadic, she also convincingly writes pieces that are East Coast angular…in all cases, her writing is highly idiomatic and effective, and her scoring is colorful and vibrant. Her sense of line and direction, while often unusual, works well, and her expression of form is idiosyncratic, yet strong and convincing. Chen handles atmospheric, stark, and busy textures, equally well, and at times her music displays a startling level of ferocity. Song in Winter is a particularly good illustration of the last of these qualities…the piece in fact sports some of the most vehemently rowdy music this reviewer has encountered in some times. Yet the writing in this example works staggeringly well, sounding plucky and robust, never forced or unnatural. Best of all, Chen combines these elements into a unique whole, making the proverbial great leap forward into a distinctive, personal style…This critic believes that Chen's sterling body of work, like a large, colorful, beautifully formed conch shell, will remain long after that of many of her country's contemporaries has disappeared…an essential recording, an absolute must-hear."-David Cleary, New Music Connoisseur"Now non-Western countries are among the leading exporters of Western music or, better put, a vibrant hybrid (as with Chen Yi)."-John Rockwell, The New York Times"Chen Yi's whirling music shrinks cultural distances to the size of the room. With energy and purpose, she employs Western instruments such as the string quartet and piano, but her language--ah her language--springs from roots embedded in Chinese melody and sonority. The result is an energizing mix of the universal and the culturally specific."-David Stabler, The Oregonian"Friday was Chen Yi day at the Festival of New American Music at California State University, Sacramento, no doubt about it…In her enormously likable way, she was as much fun as the music, which is saying a lot. A lot of her music, both at noon and in the evening, seemed to speak for a spirit both bold and risk-taking. For Chen Yi, judging by her record, that spirit and a highly inventive talent for making music has piled up one of the most impressive collections of awards, commissions, residencies, and other signs of success on the current American music scene."-William Glackin, The Sacramento Bee"First, Chen writes with real fluency for traditional Chinese instruments and combines them sensitively with Western instruments. There is no sense of a precious or false fusion here. Second, Chen has a feel for color that is fresh, immediate, and gives her music a strong profile. Especially using Western percussion, she creates sonic images that have real presence and mystery."-Robert Carl, Fanfare"Regarded as one of China's most important composers, Chen Yi is a brilliant figure, stretching musical boundaries at each turn. She integrates traditional Chinese melodies, instruments, and dances into her compositional palette and, in doing so, creates aural energy that is hard to equal. Percussive thunder can rain down on percussively harmonic chimes, just as dark, low-note string segments can shadow minimal sound scapes. This collection brings together two full orchestral pieces, including Chen Yi's rousing Symphony No. 2. There is also, though, the phenomenally large-scale Chinese Myths Cantata, full of oceanic vocal power and grace provided by Chanticleer. This is a stellar snapshot of New Music's large-ensemble present, and, hopefully, its future."-Andrew Bartlett, Amazon Reviews"Chen Yi's delight in being a composer is abundantly evident as is her ability to 'speak' several languages. She is serious yet accessible, able to stir her listeners, to remind them of the sheer physical energy of orchestral music. Moreover, she devises various opportunities for players to act-out their roles as group members or as individuals"-Elaine Barkin, IAWM Journal"Chen Yi, whose music was a welcome staple in the Bay Area during her 1993-96 tenure as composer-in-residence for Chanticleer and the Women's Philharmonic, continues to find deft and and exciting ways of combining Chinese and Western musical traditions."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"There are a number of composers these days trying to forge a musical link between East and West, but few who bring as much exuberant pizzazz to the task as Chen Yi. This magnificent new CD [The
Music of Chen Yi; New Albion NA-090] documents a concert last June devoted to her orchestral music, and it makes the point with splendid force. The Chinese-born composer spent three years in San Francisco as composer-in-residence for the Women's Philharmonic and the men's chorus Chanticleer, in the course of which she created several exciting works for each ensemble. This disc includes three of the orchestral pieces and culminates with the vastly ambitious Chinese Myths Cantata. What is so thrilling about all of these pieces is the brilliant vitality with which Chen Yi dresses the strains of Chinese music in Western orchestral garb. In the pictorial, all-too-brief Ge Xu (Antiphony), for example, she re-creates the mountain top calls of a Chinese ethnic minority, the Zhuang; the sliding string melodies and thwacking ercussion seem to shimmer through the autumn air. Duo Ye No. 2 sounds as if the Stravinsky of the early ballets had looked far to the East and plundered what he found there, sprinkling it with pugnacious orchestration and a dash of knowing wit. And the Symphony No. 2 stands as a dark, haunting cenotaph to the composer's late father. The 35-minute Chinese Myths Cantata, which joins orchestra, men's chorus and a quartet of traditional Chinese instruments, … the musical riches are all there, especially in the choral passages, and in the high-relief solos for the pipa, the erhu and other Chinese instruments… the colorful genius of Chen Yi's writing shines through."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"Chen Yi is a highly trained musician who has risen to the top in two distinct musical worlds, first in China, then in the United States."-The New York Times"To hear Chen Yi's music in a concentrated dose this way was to be struck anew by the extraordinary artistic vigor and imagination of her writing, and particularly by the effortless fluency with which she melds the respective tone colors and musical vocabularies of East and West. Few composers today can match the sheer panache with which Chen Yi deploys an orchestra, and it's hard to avoid the suspicion that it is because she approaches it with her ears ringing with the sounds of traditional Chinese instruments."-San Francisco Chronicle"[Chen] is not only a master of orchestration musical texture and instrumental color. In addition, she has the rare ability to manipulate, then integrate musical forces of different characters and sizes. Sealing the deal, she proves to be a master of dramatic shape and form."-San Francisco Examiner"Chen Yi's music reveals the best of Europe and Asia… She's not a minimalist, not a serialist -- she's a Chen Yiist.""-Peoria Journal-Star"Crossing over the Pacific, Chen Yi has journeyed into a musical world of her own. In her Concerto for Piano and Orchestra and Points for the Chinese lute, East and West are blended with vive and skill. Her personality, full of joy, energy and purpose, has infused her music with a vibrant sense of life and immediacy."-Citation of the Goddard Lieberson Fellowship awarded by the American Academy of Arts and Letters"Her music blends East, West…"-China Daily"Even longtime aficionados of her brilliant fusion of Chinese and Western strains may be astonished by the splendor of this magnificent disc. The seven chamber pieces included here add up to a scintillating musical portrait of a composer at work on a thrilling cross-cultural project…Chen Yi sets Chinese folk music and European art music talking to each other so avidly that it can be hard to tell where one leaves off and the other begins…the results are endlessly exciting and beautiful. The aptly named Sparkle, a mixed octet, bursts out of the speakers with irrepressible urgency, its colors dancing and shining. In the string quintet Shuo, Chen Yi mines a gorgeous Chinese folk melody for surprising contrapuntal riches, while Song in Winter (is) a flurry of beguiling archaism."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"Chen has earned well-deserved attention as one of today’s most striking musical voices. She has fused Chinese and Western elements with perhaps more success than any other composer, to the point where you really stop thinking about East and West and just listen, with ears that are continually engaged."-Paul Horsley, The Independent (Kansas City)"…her music has obvious roots in the Asian practices of modality… But she also has an instinct to explore and tweak these devices so that they often mutate much faster than they would in traditional Chinese music. The result is even more kaleidoscopic than the source, but always brilliant and colorful. The composer also has a great rhythmic gift and drive. In short, Chen Yi is a firecracker, and her music mirrors her own incredible energy and enthusiasm."-Robert Carl, Fanfare"A superficial description of the music of composer Chen Yi is so easy to come by – her work melds the themes and sonorities of her native China with the techniques of Western classical music…But what a disc like this reveals, yet again, is how wide a range of expression and approaches that project encompasses.
…a dazzling array of undertakings…ebullient tone-painting…"-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"You can listen to the music of Chen Yi with Chinese folk idioms and revolutionary songs in your ears or you can hear it as Eastern-inflected Western music. What you can’t do is remain unmoved by her natural talent for infectious rhythms and bright harmonies.
Chen’s music is boldly creative in individualistic ways that can’t be characterized by either musical tradition."-Andrew Druckenbrod, Gramophone (review of New World Records 80691 CD)"Chen uses music the way a visual artist uses paint, to portray scenes or moods. Often she depicts traditional Chineses instruments and ceromonies, evoking different times and places through music of extreme emotional intensity."-Zachary Lewis, Cleveland Plain Dealer"…her music has color, dynamism, and energy to spare.
…masterful technique…"-Robert Carl, Fanfare
"The work’s eastern themes and rhythms, at first difficult to grasp, became intelligible with their subsequent iterations and variations. ‘Lion Dance,’ the first of three movements, bustled with the energy and high spirits of a Chinese festival…The work’s most fascinating movement, ‘YangKo,’…featured orchestra members mimicking percussion sound vocally instead of playing their instruments…[Terrie] Baune’s violin, floating above the surging chant, elegantly presented the movement’s fanciful arcs and curlicues. In the final Turkish-flavored dance, ‘Mukam,’ Baune sparkled in an impressive cadenza, full of high-velocity runs and muscular double stops."-Phyllis Rosenblum, Santa Cruz Sentinel"…characteristically evocative"-Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune"In three movements for solo violin and orchestra, she channels different folk traditions of her homeland into a zesty new creation. In the work’s most imaginative stroke, Chen Yi strings a beautiful violin melody over a piquant rhythmic mesh of vocalized syllables from the entire orchestra—the only instrumental sounds other than the soloist’s are a few brief jangles form the percussion and the occasional cello pizzicato. The two outer movements, though more straightforward, are nearly as arresting…"-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"‘Chinese Folk Dances’ [sic] is at once very Chinese in mood, yet very Western in orchestration and structure. In the 2nd movement, the orchestra vocally produced a throbbing beat somewhere between the vocalise of a Philip Glass piece and a soft rap number. Setting off the solo violin in this way was most effective…Even with the orchestral conclusion, the violin was not overshadowed, but shone through brightly right into the final, big round of applause."-Richard Lynde, Register-Pajaronia (Watsonville, CA)"…her music spoke eloquently for itself. The Chinese Folk Dance Suite is a beguiling example of Chen’s unique gifts... the work is inspired by popular folk songs and dances of the composer’s homeland, but the work’s endless melodic invention and vibrant orchestral writing are entirely her own… The beauties of the fluid, 22-minute suite were readily apparent. Once again, Chen has given the orchestra—and the world—a scintillating new work…"-Georgia Rowe, Contra Costa"Chen Yi is becoming the Amy Tan of the symphony world. Like the Bay Area’s beloved novelist, Chen weaves materials from her Chinese homeland into musical tales that compel. Chen’s works are on the surface easy to respond to, the way good writing is easy to understand. But the music belies a structural ease and an assurance that combines ideas—and instruments—central to a Western orchestra with colors and sensibilities of the ancient civilization from the East. Chen’s Chinese Folk Dance Suite for solo violin and orchestra is especially easy on the ears without slipping into the ingratiating."-Lesley Valdes, San Jose Mercury News"The three dance/rituals that form the core of the work are cleverly chosen both to create maximum contrast with each other and to match the traditional divisions of the concerto."-Michael Zwiebach, SFCV
| Tu for Orchestra |
"…dramatic intensity to the 9+1+1 rhythmic motif that underscores Tu (composed in response to the attack on the World Trade Center)."-Art Lange, Fanfare
"The most generous ovations were for the composer Chen Yi…Chen Yi is recapitulating the efforts of Russian, Finnish, Czech and Hungarian composers of a century ago or more, importing peasant tunes and rhythms as a way of infusing refinement with authenticity. Yet there's something deeply American too, about the piece's natural embrace of styles."-Justin Davidson, Newsday"…the brooding first movement contains some of the most fantastic orchestral combinations I've heard in years: solo cello over deep winds, soft string glissandos and harmonics, whispered chants from the percussion section."-Alex Ross, www.therestisnoise.com"Chen Yi's music is about storytelling and theater, and a serach for strking and original effects…Orchestra players whisper, stringed instruments scurry, the high and low possibilities of winds are tested, and timpani explode like cannonfire. This is a narrative bustling for attention, using orchestra sound as its stage and props."-Bernard Holland, The New York Times"[Yo-Yo Ma commented] "Chen Yi's music sounds both modern and ancient. Her music manages to sound both authentic and unexpected, which is what you always want from art.""-Bradley Bambarger, Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ)"…an immediately appealing, colorful and rhythmically vibrant work. Ballad, Dance, and Fantasy is brilliantly and intricately orchestrated in the contemporary manner, but its folksiness as well as its sense of drama make it compelling even on first acquaintance. This not-so-easy piece was greeted with a a standing ovation."-Timothy Mangan, The Orange County Register"…it was the orchestra that gave her concerto its character. In the ballad, a softly twittering, sometimes whispering background brought underlying enchantment to Yo-Yo Ma's rhapsodic melodies, with dark, low winds deepening the solo cello's resonance. In the dance, conga and bongos buoyed the happy spirit. Even when Ma took off in the global fantasy, the slipping and sliding violins seemed to lubricate his fingers."-Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times"…a strong manner of merging Chinese folk background…into a Western orchestral mastery shot through with dark glints. …a dazzling virtuoso piece for supercellist Yo-Yo Ma… Chen Yi's new Ballad, Dance and Fantasy is superior stuff for composer and cellist/collaborator, an extraordinary synthesis of Chinese melodic essence and manic contemporaneity that reaches beyond borders,…pauses now and then for moments of sweetness, regains a dizzying momentum and, at a breath-stopping end, simply and wonderously evaporates."-Alan Rich, LA Weekly"…lovely and lyrical…beautifully integrated score…sounds neither Eastern nor Western, but some new hybrid…magnificently communicative"-Willa J. Conrad, Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ)
"…full of interest and enjoyable to hear… lively quirkiness, vitality and fun. …Chen uses skilled imagination with instrumental timbres…"-Philippa Kiraly, Seattle Post-Intelligencer"…a dazzler… Technically assured and full of surprising sonorities, this symphony brings together Eastern and Western melody and harmony with some imaginative and effective scoring…"-Melinda Bargreen, Seattle Times
"Si Ji weaves together delicate webs of sound, different scales and eruptive clusters according to a well-planned dramaturgy… Chen Yi… combines high compositional standards with accessibility in an ideal way."-Jörg Huber, Neue Zürcher Zeitung"Chen Yi's Si Ji [is in] four seamlessly connected parts. It makes use of the orchestra, alternating extremely diaphanous textures with shattering eruptions of sound,"-Harvey Sachs, Cleveland Plain Dealer"Ms. Chen creates a third musical world, one that looks neither to Europe nor to Asia and yet is a distant mirror for both. In Si Ji color becomes a kind of counterpoint, layer added on layer… the forward progress is a thoughtfully edited stream of consciousness, one idea leading to the next."-Bernard Holland, New York Times"… a new work… of impressive coloristicm and dramatic character… a beautifully realized work filled with enchanting and cataclysmic ideas."-Donald Rosenberg, Cleveland Plain Dealer"… a 20-minute burst of freshness… both muscular and minutely shaded… drama… sudden contrasts in tiny shafts of light.
Chen Yi belongs less to the exotic camp than to the great tradition of émigré composers."-Justin Davidson, Newsday.com
"…thrilling…
…this was one of the finest new works I've encountered for a long time."-Christian Hoskins, Music OMH"…this was a knockout
Her music is a fruitful creative fusion of Chinese and Western influences.
‘Olympic Fire’ was perfectly in tune with the occasion – plunging headlong into tremendous energy and excitement…"-Jonathan Burton, http://jonathanburton.wordpress.com/2008/08/09/proms-chen-yi-olympic-fire-duke-ellington-harlem/"Olympic Fire is an attractive piece that could well go into the general repertoire."-Michael Darvell, www.classicalsource.com
| Ancient Dances Cheering, Longing, and Wondering (on three poems by Li Bai) |
"…a freewheeling duet…
…a plaintive, dual-soliloquy opening culminated in a driving catharsis…"-Matthew Guerrieri, Boston Globe
"…vividly scored… Taking inspiration from a quarte of 11th century poems, she frames a set of four distinct episodes, from a rhythmically sharp opening dominated by the percussion to a sparse, evanescent close…richly evocative."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"…a brilliant showpiece…a kind of compressed symphony, with four distinct sections depicting the seasons. It has both the intensity and originality of Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring.""-Georgia Rowe, San Jose Mercury News"…The highlight was Chen Yi's "The West Lake." …Chen's modern techniques and complex tonal palette serve as a bridge between the musical sounds of East and West…the composer has created a delicately layered work. …She treats voices like orchestral instruments and this yields wonderful results. At times the voices sound like strings, later like brass, and most strikingly, something like bells, putting you in mind of ripples created by small stones dropped in clear water."-M.L. Rantala, Hyde Park Herald"… its vibrant energy and imaginative depth are unmistakable."-San Francisco Chronicle"…Chen is deft at molding Chinese and European elements into a vivid, compelling soundscape…The first stanza gradually swelled, suggestive of a rising sun and the lapping waves--and the overall fell was awe at nature's beauty: It's a wonderful miniature."-Ted Shen, Chicago Tribune"Chen is deft at molding Chinese and European elements into a vivid, compelling soundscape…It's a wondrous miniature."-Ted Shen, Chicago Tribune"Chen's modern techniques and complex tonal palette serve as a bridge between the musical sounds of East and West. Writing different parts for each of the ensemble's nine voices, the composer has created a delicately layered work. She treats voices like orchestral instruments and this yields wonderful results. At times the voices sound like strings, later like brass, and most strikingly, something like bells, putting you in mind of ripples created by small stones dropped in clear water. The singers embraced the music beautifully."-M. L. Rantala, Hyde Park Herald"The short piece, ‘The West Lake,’ set to a poem by an 11th-Century Chinese writer in praise of a fabled lake. Chen is deft at molding Chinese and European elements into a vivid, compelling soundscape. Singing ‘The West Lake,’ in Mandarin, Chicago a cappella's nice voices did wonders with the echoey effects, enunciating syllables in an evocation of Chinese operatic cadence. The first stanza gradually swelled, suggestive of a rising sun and the lapping waves -- and the overall fell was awe at nature's beauty: It's a wondrous miniature, for which Chen, who was in attendance, and the chorus, took deserved bows."-Ted Shen, Chicago Tribune
"Chen Yi's "China West Suite" … four short exercises on Chinese themes, by turns stately and exuberant, and all of them done with the composer's mastery of form and tonal weight."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"A listener did not have to know the themes to be seduced by them, and Ms. Chen’s settings turn them into flowing dialogues between the pianists."-Allan Kozinn, The New York Times"… a welcome addition to the composer’s body of work…Chen’s work shows a brilliant feel for the dissonant implications of the folk music she quotes. The often rapid variations between the original material and her own extensions of it were handled seamlessly."-Benjamin Frandzel, San Francisco Classical Voice
"…wave-like inflections…sighing, questioning contours…went down like honey"-Zachary Lewis, Cleveland Plain Dealer"A week has gone by, and I still keep thinking about Ms. Chen's "As in a Dream" … The playing seemed to capture the contours and inflections of a sung Chinese melody."-Anthony Tommasini, New York Times"As in a dream was impressive for its mix of leisurely yet elaborate vocal lines for soprano and skittish fluttering writing for [violin and cello]."-The New York Times"…the oldest Chinese tradition and contemporary music technique are merged successfully…the traditional Chinese glissando and vibrato became various delicate and fascinating expression, Chinese speech became music directly, by singing in exaggerated reciting style."-Frankfurter Allgemeine
"Near Distance presents the composer 'lost in thought about ancient culture and modern civilization'; she is obviously thinking about the parallels and contrasts between the music of the East and of the West."-The Boston Globe"Chen Yi's sextet, Near Distance, evinced some delicate, dramatic sonorities in its fusion of east Asian and Western musical impulses."-Chicago Tribune
| Qi for Flute, Cello, Piano and Percussion |
"Qi is a very effective 10-minute piece of nature-impressionism, the sketch-like designs integrated into a whole, the sounds compelling and intriguing."-Colin Anderson, The Classical Source"This dazzling work, a sonic depiction of life force by one of the most talented of a group of recent Chinese émigré composers, combines Western and Asian sonorities and aesthetics. Song of Winter for harpsichord and zheng is another gem."-Frank J. Oteri, Chamber Music"The work's sense of unfolding is first-rate, its feel for ensemble color is nicely gauged, and its energy level is at times breathtaking"-David Cleary, The New Music Connoiseur"Qi, a glittering, kinetic juggernaut of a piece, said yet more about the immense talent of the Chinese-born Chen Yi, who now lives in America and can write academic-arcane and Pops-accessible (well, almost) works with equal facility and freshness"-Richard Buell, The Boston Globe"Chinese America composer Chen Yi offered the world premiere of Qi another of her fascinating cultural interweavings, a poetic essay marked by dynamic extremes and textural imagination."-Josef Woodard, LA Times"…a marvelous hybrid piece — Western instruments, including an array of percussion, called into the re-creation of an ancient Chinese concept of space and infinity that only music (never works) could properly describe. Among this new generation of Chinese composers, most of them now emigrated, Chen is particularly interesting for her ability to keep her own roots growing in foreign soil; what I know of her music (including a new disc on New
Albion) spans vast cultural spaces with a most endearing, easy grace."-Alan Rich, LA Weekly"Qi, a thrilling new chamber work by Chen Yi, [is] ...exhilarating. As ever with this formidable composer, the music draws on traditional Chinese sonorities, transforming them and putting them into service of a fiercely dramatic formal plan. Spare melodic fragments — plucked and sliding cello figures, feathery flourishes by the flute — begin and end the piece. But in between comes an accumulation of weight and momentum, culminating in a pair of ferocious outbursts dominated by the percussion."-SF Chronicle"…there was much to admire and recall with stimulation and pleasure during the season. My choice falls on Chen Yi's beautifully conceived Percussion Concerto… drawing musical styles and atmospheres from East and West into a coherent whole, proving again that music is a single language with a wealth of accents… I was moved and thrilled to hear a musical work first and a piece for virtuoso percussionist second."-Denby Richards, Musical Opinion"… the improvisational fantasy of Chen Yi's lovely Qi… translates the essence of [Chinese] culture into Western instruments, tapping into their aggressive quality for dramatic impact and using snappy underlying riffs as a means of unity"-David Patrick Stearns, The Philadelphia Inquirer"…very effective…the sketch-like designs integrated into a whole, the sounds compelling and intriguing."-Colin Anderson, www.classicalsource.com"The final passages of this work were perhaps the most powerful in the entire concert."-Manasi Vydyanath, Chicago Maroon
"The music proved entirely gripping."-San Francisco Chronicle
"…a sturdy composition with moments of intense color."-Kenneth LaFave, Arizona Republic"…confident orchestration, shimmering tonalities, and a beguiling palette of emotional and expressive gestures for the flutist."-Paul Ingram, Fanfare"…original…There is a subtle co-mingling between Eastern and Western idioms which gives the three-movement work its unique flavor."-Edward Reichel, Deseret Morning News"…a richly colored evocation of the Chinese bamboo flute."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
"Chen's Fiddle Suite for Erhu/Huqin and String Quartet integrates the versatile voice of the Chinese fiddles into that of the quartet. The work's three movements - are almost a concerto for erhu/huqin and the quartet. In both pieces [Zhou Long's Soul and Chen Yi's Fiddle Suite], the composers effectively merged Eastern and Western musical traditions, resulting in rock-solid pieces that some might call cross-over works but which are rather highly effective stand-alone scores that mingle best of both worlds."-Joe & Elizabeth Kahn, Independent Weekly"…in the middle movement [of Fiddle Suite, where the erhu slides and groans expressively and the Western strings play with rarefied harmonies and striking sound effects, collectively producing a richly atmospheric tone picture"-Richmond Times-Dispatch"Chen Yi's Fiddle Suite is delightful; Chinese melodies go into Western harmony and counterpoint, and Western instruments imitate Chinese timbres and attacks."-Richard Dyer, Boston Globe"In Fiddle Suiteby Chen Yi, a latter-day Chinese-American Bartok, whose ingenious works seek to reconcile Chinese melodies and modes with Western harmonies and counterpoint, the two cultures march in step to her kinetic and inventive rhythms."-Anthony Tommasini, New York Times"In its entirety, there was an unmistakable Asiatic idiom - an astonishing musical language that was at times groaning painfully, at times whispering, or stridently loud and buzzing, but on the whole gleaming with style. The wild volcanic dance at the end had thrilling passages, but nevertheless was also quite fascinating in its own right. The audience in the concert hall had every right to be animated in response."-Eckart Schwinger, Tagesspiegel Online Dienste Yerlag GmbH
"...the effect was exhilarating; Chen Yi clearly knows how to bring Western and Eastern modes into meaningful dialogue."-Nick Kimberly, Evening Standard (London)"…an extraordinary Percussion Concerto… refulgent with lush Chinese romanticism… programmatic and evocative… and a solo percussion cadenza whose phusical and aural gymnastics defy description… The BBCSO seemed to relish every moment of it all"-Hilary Finch, www.timesonline.co.uk"…a mixture of western and Chinese percussion instruments against a full symphony orchestra. And… it works: Chen Yi creates a genuine vesceral quality and the Chinese percussion instruments have a real function within the otherwise western orchestration rather than being blandly superimposed. Oriental scales colour the music but don't define it."-Erica Jeal, The Guardian
| Feng for Woodwind Quintet |
"Though not exactly a breezy work, Feng (which means "wind" in Chinese), composed by the celebrated Chen Yi, is shorter in length (two movements) and diversity of style. But there is not dearth of textual interest. Ms. Chen has discovered a way to exploit Western instruments and even Western harmonies without uprooting and divorcing herself from Chinese culture."-Barry L. Cohen, The New Music Connoisseur
"Sound of Five for Cello and String Quartet was perhaps the most successful piece of the evening…this composition also stresses the adaptation of Western atonality and musical structures to the timbres of Chinese instruments."-Joe & Elizabeth Kahn, Independent Weekly"…sounds that merge the earthy, modal music of Chinese folk song with the hard-driving and harmonically astringent styles of Western contemporary music."-Anthony Tommasini, New York Times"By the time we reached the last piece, Chen's "Sound of the Five," I was scoured out. But she wasn't. Chen's music is irresistible, urelenting. With a smile and a wave, she yanked us back to life, turning Western instruments into vernacular Chinese bells, drums, pipes, and a 2,000-year-old zither."-David Stabler, The Oregonian
"The brief two-part piece opens with an ingenious tune that stays in the mind, then barnstorms to a close with a furious dance."-Paul Horsley, The Kansas City Star
| Ning Trio for Violin, Cello and Pipa |
"Ning (2002) by Chen Yi, used (violin, cello, and pipa) in a melancholy and sometimes terrifyingly visceral evocation of China during World War II. A traditional song "Jasmine Flower," is buried and fragmented within the work's textures."-Allan Kozinn, The New York Times"…the concert’s highlight: “Ning,” by Chen Yi…
This riveting, at times intense, work manages to be alternately explosive, bleak and penetratingly poignant."-Kyle MacMillan, Denver Post Fine Arts Critic"A sorrowful but hopeful mood… pervaded the Chinese composer Chen Yi’s Ning (2001), her subtly powerful lament for a homeland ravaged by war… plucking sounds eerily rose and fell against, and finally merged with, the agitated statements of violin and cello."-John von Rhein, Chicago Tribune"…striking, texturally colorful…veering from frenzied agitation to meditative resignation…"-Vivien Schweitzer, The New York Times"…riveting…lacy tunes on the violin and cello interact with an eerily high-pitched skittish melody on the pipa."-Anthony Tommasini, New York Times"Chen Yi’s Ning… is a major new work integrating the pipa into a small ensemble of Western instruments (with cello and violin). It succeeds where so many other cross-cultural works have failed, establishing a feeling of balance and unity between instruments that speak different languages, forcing the Western players into places that aren’t entirely comfortable, yet never distorting the natural capacities of their instruments. The piece has structure, depth of emotion, a wealth of color and pure aural fantasy, and it ingratiates itself on the imagination with each subsequent hearing… the dark, even ghoulish intimacies of Chen Yi…"-Philip Kennicott, Washington Post"…The strongest impressions were left by the music of Chen Yi…Ningis an angry musical response to the 1937 Massacre in Nanjing. The music is dramatic, with lacerating violence finally moving toward meditation and the blessing of souls. The composer's compelling style bridges East and West, like the timbres of the instruments."-Richard Dyer, Boston Globe"…the pipa…blended seamlessly with its Western counterparts…Ning, rotating solo lines for all three players, had many of the same sonic textures as the great guitar works of Rodrigo or Sor. Chen Yi is a composer worth seeking out."-Keith Powers, Boston Herald
"…was a departure for the composer from her typical joyful music. It began with explosive energy and even some anger. The chromatic ascending and descending scales on the violin and cello added depth to the piece. Contrasting this was piano turned artillery, lobbing 'shots' of struck chords over the bow of the audience."-Andrew Druckenbord, Post-Gazette
"I especially liked… Chen Yi's "Burning," … It added up to the liveliest new-music concert I've heard in ages."-Terry Teachout, The Washington Post
"Ms. Chen's writing is energetic and thoughtfully shaped, and deftly conveyed the intensity of these small dramas."-Allan Kozinn, The New York Times
"…the Ying Quartet performed the world premiere of Chen Yi's At the Kansas City Chinese New Year Concert. …compelling piece… a fascinating amalgam of classical Eastern and Western idioms."-Jeremy Eichler, New York Times"Chen's "The Talking Fiddle" [first movement of At the Kansas City Chinese New Year Concert] provided the brightest, freshest flavors. Her music began by conjuring up a bustling celebration that was full of joy...The viola shouted the greeting first. The others chimed in lustily."-Steven Brown, The Charlotte Observer
"Sprout brushes sixth-century Chinese melody into a rhapsodic string-orchestra arc…"-Matthew Guerrieri, Boston Globe"Sprout…casts a placid harmonic spell…"-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
"…this concerto has wonderful moments. [Chen Yi] tastefully deploys expressive effects (glissandos in double notes, for example), takes the trouble to exploit the soloist's lyrical qualities, and contrives a colorful accompaniment."-David Hurwitz, Classics Today.com"The music moves in gigantic waves with progressively higher crests. Chen Yi's clarity of formal purpose is matched and supported by the brilliance of her orchestration. Eleanor's Gift is a stunning work with an exhilirating sweep to it. The orchestra took obvious pleasure in rendering this highly successful new score."-Richard Festinger, San Francisco Classical Voice"The cello is in almost constant song: beguiler, protester and persuader. The orchestral tissue moves in kaleidoscopic richness with discordant eruptions, whispers and breathing effects."-Rob Barnett, Musicweb
"…a non-stop build of energy and color that crests and refreshes like an ocean wave…"-Robert Carl, Fanfare"…evocative…evolved slowly from a delicate blur – the musical equivalent of magical realism – to a hefty, shimmering structure"-Allan Kozinn, The New York Times
"…confidently unpretentious."-Miriam Seidel, Philadelphia Inquirer"…a witty rhythmic jest for violin and percussion, makes a crisp, transparent effect."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
"What's remarkable about the piece is the profusion of ideas and the sophistication of the scoring. East meets West in a series of mammoth outbursts and quiet silky exchanges, and the meeting is congenial."-San Francisco Examiner"This is far from timid music, and it sent its vivid messages along a sensory hotline to which these particular musicians hotly responded. Ms. Chen, in other words, knows the sounds she can build from an orchestra, knowing too that the Central Philharmonic players share her relish for them."-The New York Times"...a refreshingly original piece combining Western orchestral idioms with traditional Eastern pentatonic tonalities. Although only a few minutes long, it is a thoughtfully conceived composition of youthful, yet not unpolished, expression."-New York Post
"…one 15-minute movement of much expressive beauty and evocative sounds in the orchestra, above which the cello soars to great effect."-David Moore, American Record Guide
"Chen Yi explores sophisticated dimensions in sound… the tartness, the asperity were unapologetic, the marshaling of events shrewd, the orchestration masterly… An extraordinary ear, a formidable talent, an original— how good to have made the acquaintance of Chen Yi."-The Boston Globe
"Chen’s music is rooted in Chinese and modern American traditions and is almost always catchy and attractive. Ge Xu is inspired by festival music of the minority Zhuang people in southern China and matched its festive purpose."-Andrew Patner, Chicago Sun-Times
| "Based on the singing of field workers in southern China, [Ge Xu] is richly affirmative, a feeling that is difficult to convey without sounding facile or simple minded."-Richard Dyer, Boston Globe
"The flute soloist, Donna Orbovich, captivated the audience with her tongue tricks and ease in free pitches from Western constraints. Chen showed brilliance in mixing brass passages and loud orchestral thuds with the solo flute."-News-Tribune"…truly delightful and substantial flute concerto…Although the idiom of the concerto is firmly rooted in the present, the inspirations are the sounds of ancient Chinese wind instruments, and the piece grows organically from the rootstock of pure Chinese folk music…It is a pleasure to welcome this important new work to the flute repertoire."-Leslie Sheills, Pan Magazine
"…lyrical yet stormy melodic flow."-Art Lange, Fanfare"…three ways of looking at China. Chen begins her impassioned 1998 10-minute score with a piccolo imitating a Chinese flute playing a folk tune. She builds up into a ferocious holocaust of sound but somehow the sweetness of folksong survives in the strings."-Mark Swed, The Los Angeles Times"…progressive in design and concentrated in authority… Chen Yi’s score upped the ante even further… Seeking an analogy to such forces as ‘the tension of breathing lava,’ with some ferocious licks for violin solo,… Momentum often pushed the orchestra to limits of sonority and sectional articulation."-Andrew Adler, The Louisville Courier-Journal"Chen's "Momentum" … very successfully fuses spare, sinuous traditional Chinese elements with the complexity and rhythmic vibrancy of the European modernist tradition. … memorable for its astonishing effects …"-Mike Greenberg, San Antonio Express-News
"Most rewarding is Chen Yi's concerto, which boasts her trademark fusion of Chinese and Western elements."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"...a mixture of western and Chinese percussion instruments against a full symphony orchestra. Chen Yi creates a genuine visceral quality and the Chinese percussion instruments have a real function within the otherwise western orchestration rather than being blandly superimposed. Oriental scales colour the music but don't define it."-Erica Jeal, The Guardian"…a major and fiery new score by Chen Yi… The orchestra is used subtly, the references to Chinese opera are well integrated into a score tailored for Western musicians and instruments, and the work builds to a powerful yet complex climax. It is poetic music in which sounds exotic to Western ears are deployed without their exoticism being advertised."-Philip Kennicott, Washington Post"... a richly engaging musical experience. In shimmering surges, intuitively crested waves and sudden eddies, the piece pulls the listener along. There's kind of tidal force to the piece, a perpetual and varied connection between its jittery, storm-tossed surface and a deeper movement... The piece spins the temperaments and timbres of East and West together without distorting them."-Steven Winn, San Francisco Chronicle"...an extraordinary Percussion Concerto... refulgent with lush Chinese romanticism... programmatic and evocative... and a solo percussion cadenza whose physical and aural gymnastics defy description... The BBCSO seemed to relish every moment of it all."-Hilary Finch, www.timesonline.co.uk"For the first two minutes there’s the astonishing range of sounds made by a collection of traditional Chinese gongs, and when the orchestra enters it feels effortlessly oriental."-Andrew McGregor, BBCi music"The fun of the evening was… pretty well concentrated in the final work… a flashy and colourful Percussion Concerto written for the brilliant Scottish percussionist Evelyn Glennie by Chinese composer Chen Yi.
Chen has designed a striking visual as well as aural piece for a large battery of tuned and untuned percussion, all inspired by the arts of the Beijing Opera… the sonic effects were riveting."-Ken Winters, The Globe and Mail (Toronto)"[Chen Yi’s Percussion Concerto] was Western-classical in structure, shape and physical orchestration but Chinese enough in flavour and content… given the stunning presence of Scottish soloist Evelyn Glennie."-The Straits Times (Singapore)"Percussion Concerto bears achingly beautiful passages in its three movements…mixed at times with feverish intensity…
Highlights of the 20-minute piece included the energetic and varied percussion…and the wonderful Chinese operatic-style recitation of Shu Shi’s “Prelude to Water Tune”"-Evans Donnell, www.tennessean.com
"…steely…evocative, Chen Yi's spirited Piano Concerto strangely seemed to summon textures and harmonies one associates with French impressionsm. Yet there were hints of Asian melodic motifs streaming through the score."-Cecelia Porter, Washington Post"... based on a Chinese folk song but is in no sense folksy in spirit, passes through phases of extreme aggressiveness and lovely delicacy,... The piano shimmers and glistens, or confronts an assertive and colorful orchestra."-New York Post
"… a happy rush of trills and scales and percussive explosions, but it also explores sophisticated pitch relationships."-Los Angeles Times"… the texture is bright and magical."-The New York Times
"Slowly unpacking itself through imitation, the music ecstatically builds in layers then fades beautifully away."-Andrew Druckenbrod, Gramophone (review of New World Records 80691 CD)
"…a dark, pulsing and deeply interesting piece… I was especially impressed by some eloquent passages for mixed percussion - death rattles from the snare drums, followed by the remnants of a chime, repeated again and again in a long and brutal fade out."-Tim Page, The Washington Post"The rite (ceremony) begins, slowly the music sets in, which imitates the Chinese instruments Suona and Sheng. The piece with the title Praying for Rain gets faster and faster. The moment intensifies, the runs and motives get wilder, more urgent, until the long anticipated rain sets in… The lifelong study of traditional Chinese music leads Chen Yi to settings of Chinese melodic structures… The second movement... is touching in its simplicity. Song of the Chu conjures up far away lands and old times. The finale Shifan Drums and Gongs is highly expressionistic, the percussive elements reminding of Stravinsky’s Sacre, but still having their own expressive power…"-Von Markus Dippold, Stuttgart Daily"…The rhetorical force and dark beauty of Chen Yi's Symphony No. 2 are undeniable .... a memorably powerful statement whose emotional and even philosophical impact emerges from carefully crafted musical materials."-San Francisco Chronicle"It is an ever-cresting surge of slithering bass sonorities, high ghostly string harmonics, filigree woodwind lines, bright splashes of brass, pointillistic flecks of percussion.… feast for the ears, and its strongest images lingered."-The New York Times
| Septet for Erhu, Pipa, Percussion and Saxophone Quartet |
"…remarkable…
…composed with terrific flair…
…infused with a folkish spirit, often a vivacious one."-James M. Keller, Chamber Music Magazine (about Innova 767 CD)"At first glance, the saxophone quartet Prism and the instrumental ensemble Music From China would seem to be strange bedfellows…
At the Freer Gallery’s Meyer Auditorium on Sunday, the answer seemed to be that, given the right music, this could be a strangely satisfying collaboration.
Chen Yi’s Septet split the two ensembles, with the saxes’ energetic punctuation answered antiphonally by the more restrained strings and percussion, and this worked well…"-Joan Reinthaler, The Washington Post
"A highlight was "Tibetan Tunes"…Recorders and the two-stringed Erhu were Chen's inspirations here, and the trio [Violin, Cello, Piano] mimicked both with serene trills, chime-like chords and a spine-tingling glide up the cello."-Zachary Lewis, Cleveland Plain Dealer
"…examination of the score reveals a musical palette that belies the work’s apparent simplicity.
…Textures are intricately woven from myriad musical strands; every section of the ensemble is given multiple musical and technical challenges…
Chen Yi’s craft is so masterful, that despite the work’s inherent challenges for performers, to listeners, the musc sounds effortless and unpretentious."-Gary Hill, WASBE Newsletter
"Chen Yi’s compositions are always intriguing and they usually bear an immediate signature – a blending of Western and Eastern influences and a buoyant enthusiasm."-Andrew Patner, The View from Here"Someone in the audience Tuesday was moved to shout, “Splendid!” – and I can’t blame him a bit."-Richard S. Ginell, The Los Angeles Times"Chen’s writing is engaging, and straddles a line between a 20th century soundscape…and a more olden and…foreign musical world."-Kwami Coleman, The San Francisco Classical Voice"The listener’s experience of the work is akin to unrolling an ancient Chinese scroll, savouring the wonders as they pass before you."-Allan Ulrich, The Financial Times (London)"… exquisitely crafted"-Allan Ulrich, The Financial Times (London)"… the music’s overall effect is as lovely and seductive as its subject matter demands."-Joshua Kosman, The San Francisco Chronicle"From the Path of Beauty feels so all-encompassing its like a miniature universe, with a seemingly endless variety of sonorities, textures and moods.
It is one of the most enticing new works I’ve heard in a while.
Chen has earned well-deserved attention as one of today’s most striking musical voices. She has fused Chinese and Western elements with perhaps more success than any other composer, to the point where you really stop thinking about East and West and just listen, with ears that are continually engaged."-Paul Horsley, The Independent (Kansas City)"Chen Yi woos with a seductive and distinctive ‘Beauty’ [Headline]"-Joshua Kosman, The San Francisco Chronicle"On paper, they seemed like strange bedfellows. Yet the unusual combination of a male vocal ensemble with a string quartet resulted in one of the most successful performances of contemporary music in recent history.
Most sections of the work presented the chorus and string quartet together, a unique and unusual sonority."-Timothy McDonald, The Kansas City Star"A compelling blend of Chinese and western musical thought. It is not easy listening, but it is a fantastic work, altogether worthy of the company it was keeping in last night’s program [Brahms and Ravel]."-Richard Todd, The Ottawa Citizen"[Chen Yi] was back in [San Francisco] again over the weekend with a new piece, and the old emotions –
excitement, satisfaction, gratitude – surfaced all over again."-Joshua Kosman, The San Francisco Chronicle
"For sheer visceral effect, nothing matched Chen's Spring Dreams. The idea of 'petals falling' was conveyed through rhythmic whispers and chatters, birds by pulsating whistles. In the midst of this cumulative din the sound of voices actually singing came as a jolt. Chen has the ability to create a minor sensation with the simplest of means."-Paul Horsely, The Kansas City Star"…blockbuster…Spring Dreams… The music is so immediately alluring that it grips the ears and never lets go."-Donald Rosenberg, Cleveland Plain Dealer
"In her exquisitely resourceful Chinese Poems, composer Chen Yi put all six ensembles [of the San Francisco Girls Chorus] to work in the original Mandarin, interspersing intricately wrought harmonies and graceful pentatonic melodies with the occasional chirrup and whooping glissando."-Joshua Kosman, The San Francisco Chronicle"One of the highlights of the evening was Chen Yi's Chinese Poems…Judging from the audience's response (a mid-concert standing ovation), the work was a resounding success."-Frank Albinder, San Francisco Classical Voice"I would like you to know that in my many years of listening to choral performances, I have never before experienced anything as thrilling as your composition performed by 325 girls. It moved me to tears of absolute joy and exhiliration. Both the composition and the way it was performed were mind boggling. Thank you for your major contribution to a wonderful experience!"-Harold Fardal
""To the New Millenium" is a joyous addition to the choral literature."-Janelle Gelfand, The Cincinnati Enquirer
"Chen Yi's "Landscapes," receiving its world premiere, was a brief, diamond-clear evocation of a landscape, complete with sonic equivalents of clouds, raindrops, a lake, even hills."-Paul Horsley, KC Star"Chen Yi's Landscape, receiving its world premiere, was a brief, diamond-clear evocation of a landscape, complete with sonic equivalents of clouds, raindrops, a lake, even hills."-Paul Horsley, The Kansas City Star
"Chen Yi's Sparkle woke us from the reverie. The title says it all: this 1992 tour de force is a kaleidoscope of bright, metallic color, tightly structured and always demanding utmost virtuosity. With good reason it is her most popular piece."-Paul Horsley, The Kansas City Star"Chen Yi's music captures the polyphony of two cultures. In her latest recording, Sparkle, we hear the exhilirating tension, self-introspection and thrilling juxtaposition produced when an artist grapples with the superimposition of two distinct worlds…The CD further confirms that Chen Yi is one of the most exciting and talented composers working today."-Eleanora Beck, IAWM Journal"The evening's high point, surely, was Chen Yi's Sparkle. Pulsating with restless energy, the music dashes, buzzes, soars like so many flights of the bumblebee. It catches its breath now and then -- with respites of fragmented, sinuous Chinese folk melodies -- only to be shaken and exhorted to race again by loud whacks on the drum. No other piece on the program approaches it in originality."-Ted Shen, Chicago Tribune"Impressive, too, was Chen Yi's Sparkle, an aptly named piece of brilliance featuring slow steps in high trills from combinations of piano, marimba, vibraphone and piccolo, with always interesting backgrounds…the piece had a distinct, thrilling identity."-Paul Griffiths, The New York Times
"…13 minutes of very effective orchestration…in a style very much Chen's own, with its characteristic opposition of very high violins and very low percussion."-David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com"Momentum (1999) [is] a powerful score that crackled with motion and energy."-Mary Ellyn Hutton, Cincinnati Post"…supercharged, smartly crafted…"-Lawrence B. Johnson, The Detroit News"That left the opening selection, Chen Yi's Momentum as the most rewarding part of the concert at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts…a brilliant and appealing new work."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
"…the best music is the lyrical middle section where delicately ornamented tunes mimic traditional pentatonic melodies."-Mark Lehman, American Record Guide
"Ge Xu (Antiphony) is richly affirmative, a feeling that is difficult to convey without sounding facile or simple minded. The music is Chen Yi's own, but there shines through it a spirit that Haydn, Mozart, Rossini, and Dvorak would recognize immediately, and they would smile the way the rest of us did."-Richard Dyer, The Boston Globe
"The Romance portion of the work is languid and ethereal. The more vigorous Dance takes melodies commonly found in Beijing opera and casts them into a cauldron of nervous tremolos and pulsating repeated gestures."-Joseph Sargent, San Francisco Classical Voice"…sweetly lyrical but never cloying…"-David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com
| Shuo for String Orchestra |
"…fearless melodic beauty…"-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle"Ms. Chen, one of several Chinese composers who have had an important impact on the new-music scene in recent years, contributed Shuo (1994), a cheerful, pretty and rhythmically vital work that quotes and transforms folk melodies from her homeland."-The New York Times
"…rugged and earthy...It proves that good music can be scored for the most unusual instruments in a charming, rhythmically complex work."-Delonda Hartmann, Muncie Star Press"…its earthy, vigorous outer movements project a passionate strength."-David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com"Chen used Cantonese music elements in the first movement "Lion Dance." In the second movement "Yangko," she brought us beautiful scenery of rural village through a pentatonic melody and Yangko drumbeat as the background. In the third movement "Mugam," [sic] she applied Xinjiang fold tune. The cheerful and enthusiastic mood led the music to the climax of the whole piece."-Song Xuejun (trans. Wang Xiaoxi), Central Conservatory of Music/en.ccom.edu.cn
| TU for Orchestra |
"[a] dark and angry work, dedicated to the New York firefighters who died on 9/11..Chen's emotional directness and lack of pretense is very refreshing."-David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com"Dedicated to the New York City firefighters in the September 11 tragedy, her piece proved a powerfully, impassioned outcry."-John Rockwell, The New York Times"…a fierce 14-minute outcry. Written as both a howl of pain in response to the attacks of September 11, 2001, and a tribute to the New York firefighters who lost their lives, "Tu" takes off with a crash and rarely flags in its unbridled energy."-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
"…an extrovert energy, a keen ear for instrumental color and a fusion (or hybridization) of disparate styles that is both distinctive and assured."-Larry Fuchsberg, Minneapolis Star Tribune"…her affection for [Chinese folk music] forms combines with darker memories of Mao’s oppressive government. The clash resonates throughout the work, finding a sense of calm individuality only in the solo cello…"-Rob Hubbard, St. Paul Pioneer Press"… canny use of instrumental color… Part of Ms. Chen's success may come from approaching the orchestra with a fresh perspective: she works capably within its vocabulary, but brings in enough of a foreign accent -- and not only in the pentatonic Chinese-isms -- to reanimate the language with a sense of wonder."-Anne Midgette, The New York Times
Page last updated July 26, 2010
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