The Sounds of China-Yixin Wang Guzheng Recital
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The Sounds of China-Yixin Wang Guzheng Recital PROGRAM 临安遗恨-Eternal Sorrow of Lin’an LIN, Jiliang HE, Zhanhao WANG, Yixin - Guzheng WANG, Derek - Piano 蝴蝶与蓝-Butterfly and Blue TAO, Yimo WANG, Yixin - Guzheng LIU, Anjie - Guzheng HU, Meilin - Cello 伊犁河畔-By the Side of Yili River CHENG, Gongliang WANG, Yixin - Guzheng ZHU, Yining - Xinjiang Hand Drum 寒鸦戏水-Winter Crows Playing in Water Chaozhou folk music WANG, Yixin - Guzheng 篆音-Sound of Seal Cutting LIU, Sanzang WANG, Yixin - Guzheng LIU, Anjie - Guzheng ZHU, Yining - Percussion LI, Sophia - Flute, Percussion 袖梦-The Dream of Long Sleeve Dance LIU, Le WANG, Yixin - Guzheng PROGRAM NOTES: 1. 临安遗恨-Eternal Sorrow of Lin’an LIN, Jiliang HE, Zhanhao WANG, Yixin - Guzheng WANG, Derek - Piano This piece was originally composed by Lin Jiliang in 1990 as a ruan solo piece. In 1992, He Zhanhao recomposed it as a guzheng concerto. The theme is based on a traditional song called "Man Jiang Hong", which tells the story of Song Dynasty hero Yue Fei. He was betrayed by traitorous officials and imprisoned in Lin'an (now Hangzhou) prison. The piece depicts the resentment of the treacherous and powerful officials, and his helplessness as he wants to serve the country, but has no way to do it. 2. 蝴蝶与蓝-Butterfly and Blue TAO, Yimo WANG, Yixin - Guzheng LIU, Anjie - Guzheng HU, Meilin - Cello The original piece is written for guzheng, cello, and electronics. Here we did some rearrangement, and used a second guzheng in place of electronics. This piece was included in one of the albums of Wu Li, a guzheng performer and educator. With a uniquely elegant temperament, it combines traditional and modern elements of guzheng music. A beautiful landscape is depicted with a butterfly flying through the sea of flowers, bathing in the warm sunshine, and resting next to the quiet river. At the end, it disappears inside the deep valley. The melancholic melody of the cello expresses our reluctance to see this beautiful scene fade away. In contrast, the range of guzheng in the piece is high, clear, and translucent. The guzheng depicts the butterfly, and the cello represents the landscape, while the electronics represent the blue feeling in this romantic and beautiful piece. 3. 伊犁河畔-By the side of Yili River CHENG, Gongliang WANG, Yixin - Guzheng ZHU, Yining - Xinjiang Hand Drum This piece by Cheng, Gongliang is a guzheng solo, accompanied by Xinjiang hand drum. It highlights the musical style of Xinjiang Uyghur people, known as Synam. This song depicts the beautiful natural scenery of the Yili River region and the joyful life of the Yili people singing and dancing under the Tianshan Mountain near the Yili River. 4. 寒鸦戏水-Winter Crows Playing in Water Chaozhou folk music WANG, Yixin - Guzheng This piece uses an elegant melody to describe the scene of winter crows playing with each other in the water. It follows the typical structure of a Chaozhou folk song. In three parts, it has distinct characteristics and clear boundaries. The “head” part, also known as Adagio, is in 4/4 beat, and the “Jumping” part follows in 1/4 beat in a slightly faster tempo that is very distinctive as most notes are played in the upbeat, with rests on the downbeat. The third part is the fastest, also in 1/4 beat. Chaozhou traditional music assigns very specific roles for the left hand and the right hand in guzheng playing. The right hand does almost all the playing, while the left hand controls the style and color by pressings and various kinds of vibratos. It also has notations for clear breaks in the music, in which a staccato effect is created by using the hand to stop the lingering sound. 5. 篆音-Sound of Seal Cutting LIU, Sanzang WANG, Yixin - Guzheng LIU, Anjie - Guzheng ZHU, Yining - Percussion LI, Sophia - Flute, Percussion This piece perfectly combines drums, zithers and flutes. The powerful and passionate drum intro surprises the audience at the very beginning. Overall, it creates the exciting atmosphere of ancient Chinese marching and parade scenes with the music lingering in the air. 6. 袖梦-The Dream of Long Sleeve Dance LIU, Le WANG, Yixin - Guzheng This piece was inspired by the Chinese folk dance called “Long Sleeve Dance.” It is both soft and rhythmic at the same time, with a legato section to show the beauty of the dance and an allegro section that is fast and rhythmatic. The piece was composed by guzheng performer and composer Liu Le around 2009. It is a single trilogy form without repetition. Creative features and playing techniques, including tremolos, arpeggios and long wave skills of zither music, capture the unique beauty of the long sleeve dance. ABOUT THE MUSICIANS: Yixin Wang started playing guzheng at the age of three in Shanghai, China. She won her first competition at the age of seven. After moving to Houston in 2014, she joined the Houston Traditional Chinese Music Group and the Texas Philharmonic Folk Orchestra, and became a board member and section leader in 2017. Since then Yixin has performed at TEDx Sugarland, World Affair Council of Greater Houston, George Bush International Airport, the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Houston, Texas A&M University, Rice University, among music festivals and Galas. She dedicated a huge amount of time to popularize and educate Chinese traditional instruments and music in America. She has also held the first traditional Chinese benefit concert in the Katy, Texas area in 2017. She is currently a third-year student in the US-China Music Institute of the Bard College Conservatory of Music, studying under Professor Zhou Wang in the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China. Derek Wang was born in Dalian, a seaside city in Liaoning, China in 2000. He has always known that being a concert pianist is his ultimate goal in the future. Starting at the age of six, piano has been an intimate part and the supreme aspiration of his life. All of this commitment was inspired by an episode of the famous MGM cartoon Tom and Jerry -- "The Cat Concerto." The Hungarian Rhapsody performed by the cat made him fall in love with piano immediately. He is not only a pianist, but also a professional baduk player who earned a master level nationally at the age of 9. In 2008, he started taking lessons in Shanghai and eventually moved to Shanghai 3 years later. When he was 15, he studied in Michigan for 3 years. At the moment, Wang is in his second year in Houston, Texas, studying for his bachelor's degree. Wang is dedicated to works of all composers but especially keen on works of the romantic era. He won the first prize at the Eighth International Frederick Chopin Competition For Young Pianists(China), third prize of the Fourth Asia piano Competition, and second prize of The 77th Steinway International Piano Competition For Young Artists. He also performed numerous recitals at the Shanghai Recital Hall and was awarded two senior recitals during his last year at high school. Yining Zhu started learning Chinese percussion in elementary school under Lihong Sun. After moving to Houston, she joined the Houston Traditional Chinese Music Group and the Texas Philharmonic Folk Orchestra as a percussion player. Participating in a Chinese orchestra has broadened her interests, as she began learning more instruments such as yangqin, marimba, and snare drum. She is currently studying yangqin under Heng Zhang and Chinese percussion under Tsai-Chien Lee. She is also applying to become an undergraduate student in the Bard Conservatory of Music. Anjie Liu is a junior at Seven Lakes High School. She started to learn guzheng in middle school. Since then, music has been a major part of Anjie’s life and defines many of her accomplishments. She has participated in many concerts, soloed in the International Day, performed at nursing homes with Music of Harmony since 2018, and won first place twice in Houston Bilingual Professional Music Competition in 2019 and 2020. Besides playing guzheng, Anjie is active in various school activities and volunteering, that she is currently a historian in the National Chinese Honor Society and a scheduling coordinator in the Foodie Union. Sophia Li started learning bamboo flute, cucurbit flute and Bawu with Sylvia Yan when she was six years old. Since 2013, she has been active in sharing Chinese music and culture in the Houston community. She has performed at the Houston International Festival, Houston Chinese New Year Gala, Asia Society Texas Center, Children’s Museum, Bayou City Art Festival (a festival that has consistently ranked among the top in Sunshine Artist's 200 Best) and more. In 2016, she was named Rising Star for the Houston Young Artist Concert. Meilin Hu is a senior at Tompkins High School in Katy, Texas. She has played cello for 7 years and was a member of Tompkins’ Sinfonietta Orchestra. She has received multiple Superior ratings for both her cello solos and as part of an ensemble. She is set to enter Cornell this fall as a freshman at Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, and she hopes to continue to play cello during college. .