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[28th Orchestral Season]
Press Release (2 pages)
May 27, 2005
The lilting notes of the
Chinese flute can pluck your heart's string
HKCO presents "Xiao - the Instrument that Tells of Journeys in Life"
From June 24-25, the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra (HKCO) is holding a selection of the best-known dizi and xiao pieces concert, Xiao - the Instrument that Tells of Journeys in Life at 8pm, at the Hong Kong City Hall Theatre.
The Chinese flute exists in two forms, the dizi (or di for short) and the dongxiao (or xiao for short). The dizi has an open, lilting tone colour that captures the emotional nuances of Man vividly, and is commonly used in folk or regional music. The dongxiao, on the other hand, has a pure tone colour and richer harmonics, thus suggesting a subtlety and restraint. Tam Po-shek, a Chinese flute virtuoso, has a career that spans more than thirty years. He makes his own xiaos and because of this, he has a philosophy on the art of playing the instrument and on life. "An ordinary piece of bamboo can be made into a musical instrument that is capable of depicting the world around us, as well as our thoughts and emotions. The expressions are endless, and the benefits that one gains from this are there for life," he said.
By tradition, the dongxiao is a literati instrument because it is congenial with the guqin, both in tone colour and volume. Many guqin players therefore find it most acceptable, next only to their own instrument. Duets of these two instruments are among the music lovers' favourites. According to Tam, "the sound of the dongxiao can be linked to the innermost feelings in us, and calls up memories of long, long ago."
In this concert series featuring Tam and his chosen instrument as the star of the show, Tam will be joined by his two colleagues in the wind section of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra and virtuosi in their own right, Sun Yongzhi, Section Leader (Wind) and Dizi Principal, and Choo Boon-chong, Assistant Principal, as well as veterans Luo Jing and Tse Chun-yan, to perform in an ensemble under the baton of Yan Huichang a programme of dizi and xiao music.
Tam Po-shek will also play the navigator role to guide the audience in appreciation of the different pieces. He will talk about the background to each piece, as well as the tonal nuances of the dongxiao as a vehicle of communication. The programme includes The Toll of the Temple Bells by Cui Yulin, Going Up-river at the Qingming Festival by Liu Weiguang and performed on the konghou by Luo Jing, The Flute of Humanity by Chen Bai-zhong, and three compositions by Tam Po-shek himself, How Often Do We Have Such a Bright Moon (with Tse Chun-yan on the guqin), Dreams of My Old Home (in 1998) and The World of Man in Turmoil, which serves as the grand finale of the concert.
Tickets for Xiao - the Instrument that Tells of Journeys in Life concert are now available at all URBTIX Outlets at $120 and 90. Half-price tickets are offered for senior citizens, people with disabilities and full-time students. Enjoy 20% discount on ticket purchase of "Chinese Flute Virtuosi in Concert" with ticket of "Xiao ¡V the Instrument that Tells of Journey in Life" starting from June 20. Please refer to the programme leaflet for more details on discount schemes. Enquiries: 3185 1600; Booking Hotline: 2734 9009. Internet Booking: www.urbtix.hk; HKCO website: www.hkco.org
¢w End ¢w
Press Enquiry¡G Ms.Vivian Ip (Public Relation & Publicity Executive)
Tel ¡G3185 1601 / 9553 2244 Fax¡G2815 5615
E-mail¡Gvivianip@hkco.org HKCO Website¡Gwww.hkco.org
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Artists Biography
Yan Huichang Conductor
National Class One Conductor. As a conductor who has worked with all professional Chinese orchestras in Beijing, Shanghai, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong, Yan has won the acclaim of the music circles in China and abroad for his artistic and conducting talents. Under his baton, and in collaboration with the famous composer Zhao Jiping, the Symphony Orchestra section of the China National Symphony Orchestra made the soundtrack recordings for such award-winning films as Raise the Red Lantern, Ballad of the Yellow River, and Five Girls and a Rope. Yan was awarded the "Cultural Medallion (Music)" by the National Arts Council of Singapore in September 2001. Since 2004, he has been a Visiting Professor in many music conservatories. Yan was awarded a Bronze Bauhinia Star (BBS) by the Chief Executive of HKSAR in 2004 in recognition of his remarkable achievements in Chinese music as well as his efforts in promoting Chinese music.
Sun Yongzhi Dongxiao
Sun Yongzhi graduated from the Xian Conservatory of Music with distinction in 1982 where he was trained by Yuan Xiuhe and dizi maestro Zhao Songting. He was appointed Dizi Principal of Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra in 1997, and is currently the Section Leader (Wind). Sun also teaches dizi at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.
Choo Boon-chong Dongxiao
Choo Boon-chong joined the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra in 1979 and is currently Assistant Dizi Principal, and also the Chairman of Hong Kong Bamboo Flute Society. His forte is in the bangdi, demonstrating excellent fingering and breathing techniques and ease in the upper register.
Tam Po-shek Host, Dongxiao
A well-known dongxiao and dizi artiste and a dongxiao maker, Tam Po-shek is currently a veteran dizi musician of HKCO. His technique on the dongxiao is an assimilation of the traditional and the modern, thus forming a style that is uniquely his own. Tam is also a writer. His publications include Techniques of the Dizi and 2 anthologies of prose, As Leaves Fall between Heaven and Earth and Hong Kong Story.
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