King of Prussia, PA – Theodore Presser Company proudly presents Huang Ruo’s Four Fragments (114-41430 - $11.99) for cello. Cast in four continuous movements, Four Fragments is a ravishing and theatrical showpiece that maximizes the cellist’s lyricism and fire, overflowing with declamatory and cadenza-like soliloquies clearly inspired by the composer’s cultural multi-dimensionalism. New York Times critic Alan Kozinn describes the relationship between East and West in Ruo’s music as such: “As in many of his scores, Chinese articulation styles – sliding notes and gracefully bending tones – mingle freely with Western moves and diatonic harmonies." See sample pages here (PDF). For advanced cellists. Dur.: 13'30"

Huang Ruo was born on Hainan Island, China, in 1976, and was admitted to the Shanghai Conservatory of Music at the age of 12. After winning the Henry Mancini Award at the 1995 International Film and Music Festival in Switzerland, he moved to the United States to further his education. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in composition from the Juilliard School. His composition teachers have included Randolph Coleman and Samuel Adler. Huang Ruo is currently a member of the composition faculty at SUNY Purchase. He is the artistic director and conductor of the Future In REverse (FIRE), and was selected as a Young Leader Fellow by the National Committee on United States–China Relations in 2006. For a complete bio and details of works, click here.

Offering music by today’s greatest composers and teachers, Theodore Presser Company is the leader in publishing educational and recital music. Theodore Presser Company is a full-range music publisher and distributes the music of over 30 publishers from around the globe, with a combined sales catalog that features over 60,000 available works. For more information about new publications from Theodore Presser Company or to locate a dealer near you, log on to www.presser.com or e-mail us at sales@presser.com. For review copies of the publications listed in this release, please contact Heidi Vanderlee at (212) 777-0900, ext. 230 or send an e-mail to hvanderlee@presser.com.