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The Leisure and Cultural Services Department is presenting in November a dance performance featuring four renowned choreographers, Helen Lai, Sunny Pang, Francis Leung and Xing Liang who will join forces with the T'ang Quartet from Singapore to pay tribute to the master of contemporary music, Arvo Part.
"Everything that is unimportant falls away..." - Arvo Part
The timeless music of Arvo Part reveals the future just as it reflects the past and the present. His exotic music combines all the element of history, present and future, it is eternal in its vision of purpose, promise and hope.
As one of the most performed contemporary composers, few of his peers have the mystic appeal of Arvo Part. Echoing the ancient, ethereal sound of medieval Russian Orthodoxy, coupled with breath-taking silence, as well as achieving colossal impact through minimal elements, Part's musical world often displays a curious mixture of profound beauty, subtlety, intensity, austerity and timelessness.
Helen Lai uses "Psalom" for her work "Frozen Memory". "...the musical instruments of death are frozen...there has to be a way to dream, a pattern...some shadows and a certain motion." said Helen. Arvo Part's music has been Helen's favourite for a long time. "His music is like glass: transparent, tranquil and soulful. Its attractiveness is further elevated by the live performance of T'ang Quartet." She added.
Sunny Pang uses "Festina Lente", "Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten" for his work "Rapid Eye Movement"(REM). Everyone sleeps. Much of what is known about sleep stems from the groundbreaking 1953 discovery of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. REM sleep is when dreaming occurs...
Francis Leung's "Color" features on "Fratres". "The word 'color' in Chinese represents the origin of all desires. It is like branding the term dangerous, immoral and disturbing, however, we welcome the challenge and excitement generated from the colorful cosmopolitan society. The ever famous Buddhist chants 'color is emptiness; emptiness is color' has a deep and far-reaching meaning. 'Color' takes no side on good or evil, it is very independent, yet it intertwines with a variety of other things..." said Francis.
Xing Liang's "That Moment" is also made with "Fratres". "It takes me along; I enjoy this sense of compliance. Until that moment arrives, when I no longer desire to follow..." said Liang.
T'ang Quartet is a renowned young ensemble from Singapore. Performing internationally to critical acclaim, the Quartet has also garnered numerous international awards including the Bartok prize from Vienna and the Special Jury Prize for best interpretation of a contemporary work. The Quartet was also a prize winner in the 2nd International Joseph Joachim Chamber Music Competition in Weimar, Germany and was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts grant from the US government to be a resident quartet in a special programme of Chamber Music America.
The performance will be staged at 8 pm from November 22 to 24 (Friday to Sunday) at the Studio Theatre, Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Tickets priced at $140 and $100 are now available at all URBTIX outlets. Half-price concessions will be granted to senior citizens, people with disabilities, full-time students and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients (Discount tickets for students and CSSA recipients available on a first-come, first-served basis). Please refer to programme leaflets for details of group booking discount scheme.
For programme enquiries, please call 2268 7323; for ticketing enquiries and reservation, please call 2734 9009; for credit card telephone booking, please call 2111 5999. To search more information on internet, please visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/cp
A free pre-performance talk on Music of Arvo Part: "Mystic Part - Searching for roots in different places" will be held at 2 pm on November 11 (Sunday) at AC2, Level 4, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Dr. Joanna Lee (PhD in Historical Musicology, University of Columbia, Honorary Research Fellow at the Centre of Asian Studies, the University of Hong Kong) is invited to speak on the subject. Admission is free and conducted in Cantonese.
End/Tuesday, October 22, 2002
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