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1 PMS# 8pg BOOKLET FRONT elia Haygood, DE Pg. 1

DELOS DE 3299 DELOS DE 3299 Zhu Lin: Transcendence for seven performers (11:47) 2 Tan Dun: Shuang Que erhu, yangqin (8:36) 3 Chen Yi: The Points pipa solo (8:55) 4 Qu Xiaosong: Ji II Floating Clouds

2 DELOS DE 3299 DELOS DE 3299 Zhu Lin: Transcendence for seven performers (11:47) 2 Tan Dun: Shuang Que erhu, yangqin (8:36) 3 Chen Yi: The Points pipa solo (8:55) 4 Qu Xiaosong: Ji II Floating Clouds chiba, zheng, yangqin, percussion (10:54) 5 Yang Liqing: Thinking qudi, erhu, zhonghu, percussion (12:07) 6 Gao Weijie: Shao I for seven performers (8:36) 7 Chen Qigang: Three Laughs di, chiba, sanxian, pipa, zheng (9:56) 1 Total Playing Time: 70:52 Huaxia Chamber Ensemble: Tsung Yeh, conductor Zhang Weilang, di, chiba, qudi Zhao Chengwei, sanxian Chen Yihan, pipa Chang Jing, zheng Cao Dewei, erhu, zhonghu Zhang Xia, yangqin Wang Yidong, percussion ORIGIN DIGIT ORIGIN DIGIT Distributed by DELOS PRODUCTIONS, INC. HUAXIA: Chinese Chamber Ensemble contemporary music for traditional Chinese instruments HUAXIA: Chinese Chamber Ensemble contemporary music for traditional Chinese instruments

3 HUAXIA Chinese Chamber Ensemble contemporary music for traditional Chinese instruments Zhu Lin: Transcendence for seven performers (11:47) Tan Dun: Shuang Que (8:36) erhu, yangqin Chen Yi: The Points (8:55) pipa solo Qu Xiaosong: Ji II Floating Clouds (10:54) chiba, zheng, yangqin, percussion Yang Liqing: Thinking (12:07) qudi, erhu, zhonghu, percussion Gao Weijie: Shao I for seven performers (8:36) Chen Qigang: Three Laughs (9:56) di, chiba, sanxian, pipa, zheng Total Playing Time: 70:52 Huaxia Chamber Ensemble Tsung Yeh, conductor Zhang Weilang, di, chiba, qudi Zhao Chengwei, sanxian Chen Yihan, pipa Chang Jing, zheng Cao Dewei, erhu, zhonghu Zhang Xia, yangqin Wang Yidong, percussion DE 3299

4 Chinese chamber music is old. It can be traced back to the Warring States (475 BC 221 BC). It grew in diversity at the Imperial Court, among the literati and simpler folk. Chinese chamber music is young. Since the 1980s, in the cultural clashes between East and West, Chinese composers have experimented in writing modern chamber music for traditional Chinese instruments, lending a new dimension to Chinese music-making. To preserve and develop the tradition and to stay abreast with global trends, Chinese musicians will continue to explore. Li Xi an, Artistic Director Transcendence, Zhu Lin Inspired by Buddhist philosophy, it warns people to be kindhearted and sympathetic and to do good things. Shuang Que, Tan Dun The main theme which is played thoughout has a strong chant-like character. The piece was written in memory of the great folk music composer Ah Bing. The purpose of using these few bars of melodic theme throughout the entire piece is not only to try to unify the two contrasting parts of the piece and all kinds of diverse thematic material, but also to show the composer s roots in traditional folk culture. Tan Dun has urged that simplicity and sincerity should not be forgotten in our busy modern life. The Points, Chen Yi Chen Yi completed The Points during a four week residence at Yaddo in July of The structure of The Points comes from the eight brush stroke movements of the Chinese character yong (eternal) in Zhengkai calligraphy. The melodic material comes from Shaanxi opera. Though the title refers to the contact points between brush and paper that commence and characterize the eight strokes, Points also aptly 3

5 captures the nature of plucked string music the melody is created from the musical points plucked forth by the fingers. Ji II Floating Clouds, Zu Xiaosong It is it. Is it is? It is it. A cymbal, that s all. Thinking, Yang Liqing Written for the ensemble to perform at Le Festival Musique en Scene 97 held in Lyon, France, it is constructed in multi-period form and decorated with heterophony, both of which are often used in Chinese music. It consists of variations made up of simple musical cells to reveal deep thoughts and feelings. Shao I, Gao Weijie Shao I was composed for seven performers. This is not a simulation of the music, called by the same name, played during the time of Confucian era (6th 5th centuries BC), but since they share the same meaning this piece was so named. In this music, the composer expresses his wishes for and adoration of the enchanting beauty of springtime. Three Laughs, Chen Qigang Chen Qigang composed this piece for the Ensemble in In it the plucked, stringed instrument sanxian imitates the sound of laughter three times. It is a humorous piece. As the Principal Conductor of the Huaxia Chamber Ensemble, Tsung Yeh has led the group in a number of highly successful tours in Europe and the U.S.A., as well as in Asia. He has been the Music Director of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra since He also holds the posts of Conductor Laureate of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta and Music Director of the Singapore Chinese Orchestra. Tsung Yeh s guest conducting engagements in the U.S. have included the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, with Alfred Brendel as soloist; the San Francisco Symphony; the Minnesota Orchestra; the Rochester Philharmonic; the Tucson Symphony and the New Haven Symphony. Tsung Yeh has been an Exxon/Arts Endowment Conductor with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and the Principal Conductor of the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra. He has served as Resident Conductor of the Florida Orchestra in Tampa/St. Petersburg, and as Principal Guest Conductor of the Albany Symphony in New York. In China, he is a frequent guest conductor with orchestras in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou,

6 Hong Kong, Taipei, and Taichung. In Europe, he is a frequent guest conductor with orchestras in Poland, Russia, and the Czech Republic. Tsung Yeh devotes much of his energy to the promotion of contemporary music. In 1995, he and the South Bend Symphony Orchestra were honored with the ASCAP Award. He has conducted in such prestigious contemporary music festivals as MUSICRAMA in Hong Kong and Festival Presence de Radio France in Paris. Huaxia Chamber Ensemble is an ensemble using traditional Chinese instruments. Consisting of the best young players in China, its aim is to preserve and introduce ancient Chinese music and China s rich, colorful folk music. The Ensemble also closely cooperates with Chinese composers both at home and abroad and plays unconventional, contemporary works, which is not only a great challenge, but also has a strong appeal for the composers and the players. It will no doubt lead to change and reform of the concept of Chinese traditional-instrument playing and help promote the creation of new Chinese music. Members of the Ensemble have received music education from institutions of higher learning and have an intuitive, spontaneous understanding of music. Taught by many of the best-known maestros of traditional Chinese instruments, each player is not only skilled at solo-playing one or more traditional instruments, but also excels at various combinations of ensemble work. Most players are winners of national and/or international Chinese traditional instruments competitions. The Ensemble has been well-received on tour in countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa, and has been regarded as the most promising group of young players from China. The Ensemble has visited France a number of times, including Presecan 96 Festival de Creation Musical (Paris), Le Festival Musique en Scene 97 held in Lyon, and Festival Avignon 97. On its first American tour in 1998, the Ensemble introduced American audiences to centuries-old, traditional Chinese music and also modern works written recently by eminent Chinese composers.

7 Some of the traditional Chinese instruments featured in this recording of Huaxia, the Chinese Chamber Music Ensemble Di A wind instrument Zheng A plucked string instrument Yangqin A zither-like instrument

8 Sanxian Pipa Erhu A plucked string instrument A plucked string instrument A bowed string instrument Executive Producers: Amelia S. Haygood, Carol Rosenberger Recording Producer: Peter Myles Recording Engineers: John Eargle, Jeff Mee Editing: Andrés Villalta Recorded First Congregational Church, Los Angeles, CA 20-bit Processing: Prism AD-1 Digital Editing: Sonic Solutions Monitor Loudspeakers (recording): Genelec 1030A (post-production): LSR 28 Microphones: Sennheiser MKH-20, Sanken CU-41, Neumann KM84 Console: Soundcraft K-1 Photos: Harry Pack Creative Direction: Harry Pack, Tri Arts and Associates Graphics: Mark Evans 7 W 2004 Delos Productions, Inc., P.O. Box 343, Sonoma, California (707) Fax (707) (800) Made in USA

9 PMS# Job # CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK back row: Wang Yidong, Li Xian, Cao Dewei, Carol Rosenberger, Amelia Haygood, Tsung Yeh, Zhang Weiliang, Zhao Chengwei front row: Zhang Xia, Chen Yihan, Chang Jing

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DE 1619 0 13491 16192 1 BABY needs LULLABYS Carol Rosenberger, piano 1. Schumann: About Faraway Lands and People (Scenes from Childhood, Op. 15) (1:48) 2. Romance in F-Sharp, Op. 28, No. 2 (4:14) 3. Evening