"Tan Dun: BACH Rock & Hanggai - When BACH meets GENGHIS KHAN" to conclude "Tan Dun WE-Festival" in December (with photos)
******************************************************************************************
Under the baton of Tan, the concert will begin with Tan's "Prelude & Fugue - Cosmos" and followed by his latest composition, "Prelude - When Bach Meets Genghis Khan", which will take the musical idioms that audiences are familiar with to lay out the dialogue between the cultures of the East and the West. "Symphonic Poem on 4 Notes: B-A-C-H-" will be presented with improvisations and variations on the four notes of Bach's name B-A-C-H, while a number of adaptations of Hanggai's works, such as "The Transistor Made in Hong Kong" and "Samsara", will be performed to realise a dialogue that interweaving time and space between classical and rock music.
At the concert, Hanggai will also perform its familiar music pieces such as "The Rising Sun", "Horse of Colours", "Invention - Four Seasons", "Grassland My Beautiful Home", "Drinking Song", "Xiger Xiger" and "Swan Geese" that possess an embodied connection to the landscapes of sunshine, grassland, mountain and river to deliver the message of protecting nature to the theatre-goers. In addition, Tan will guide the audience to participate in the performance of his work "Passacaglia: Secret of Wind and Birds" through mobile phones, allowing them to experience the interweaving of the nature and music technology.
The concert will also feature singer-songwriter Tan Weiwei, who will perform the "Four Pieces for Female Voice", based on the folk music of different regions of China, namely the "Old Song", "Crying Song", "Water Song" and "Qin Song", in a Western instrumental music setting with rustic traditional oriental vocal style. Her performance will make an interesting contrast to the macho rock band Hanggai.
Tan is an internationally renowned Chinese composer, musician and conductor, and was appointed by the UNESCO as a Goodwill Ambassador in 2013. He is currently Dean of the Bard College Conservatory of Music in New York and an honorary artistic director of the China National Symphony Orchestra. Tan has been promoting the messages of peace and green environment throughout the years. His music has made an indelible mark on the world's music scene, which earned him many prestigious honours, including the Grammy Awards, the Academy Awards and the Golden Lion Award for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Biennale. He has led some of the world's most esteemed orchestras, and composed more than 100 musical works over the years. His famous works includes the film scores of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "Hero" as well as the award ceremony music for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. In 2021, Tan was presented with an honorary doctorate by the Education University of Hong Kong. Tan has been serving as the ACP since January 1 this year for a period of five years.
The Hanggai Rock Band was founded in 2004, with members coming from Inner Mongolia, Qinghai and other places. It has given more than 500 performances in over 60 countries or regions. The band's sound finds its roots in Mongolian folk music but reaches out to contemporary rock, incorporating traditional instruments like the tobshuur and morin khuur with Western drums and electric guitars, to create a highly distinctive form of world music with ethnic characteristics.
The Changsha Symphony Orchestra is the only major professional symphony orchestra in Hunan Province. While constantly refining its interpretations of Western classical music, the Orchestra also encourages new compositions for Chinese symphonic music and is keen to promote them. It also aims to develop symphonic music in Hunan in a bid to incorporate Chinese music with mainstream symphonic music. Since 2019, the Orchestra has been hosting the "Changsha City Symphony Orchestra Summit", an annual event that has become an essential platform for international collaboration and exchange in symphonic music.
Tan Weiwei is a renowned vocalist singing in the indigenous style. She graduated from the Sichuan Conservatory of Music. In 2006, she won the Chengdu regional championship of the Super Girl singing competition, followed by the national runner-up title. In 2009, her song "Encounter" made her receive the Best Original Film Song award at the Golden Horse Awards. She was named the Best Mandarin Female Singer at the Chinese Music Media Awards in 2011.
"Tan Dun WE-Festival": Tan Dun: BACH Rock & Hanggai - When BACH meets GENGHIS KHAN will be held at 7.30pm on December 9 and 10 (Saturday and Sunday) at the Grand Theatre of Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Tickets priced at $200, $260, $320, $380 and $450 are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288. Package discounts will be available for standard ticket purchase with another "Tan Dun WE-Festival" programme "Opera and Dance Theatre". For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7323 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/music/programs_1638.html.
"Tan Dun WE-Festival" offers an extension programme "World Premiere & Symposium" (conducted in English and Putonghua), which will be held at 2pm on December 10 (Sunday) at the Grand Theatre of Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Artistic Director Tan will engage in discussion with Hong Kong young composer Kam Shing-hei, Shanghai young composer Liu Junhao, Associate Director (Artist Management) of Harrison Parrott Federico Hernandez and Director of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Gillian Choa. There will be a live performance session, with Kam and Liu together with the New York Bard Percussion Ensemble. They will perform their world premieres of WE-commissioned works "A Dream in Tsim Sha Tsui" and "Time Shadows" respectively. The Ensemble will also present music pieces of the renowned composer John Cage, and Tan will provide introduction to his works "H2O Tempo" and "WE (West & East)" that are created with Metaverse technology. Interested audience can reserve their seats by registering online (www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/music/programs_1643.html#tab_2_0) with the reference number stated on the programme ticket of "Opera and Dance Theatre" or "Tan Dun: BACH Rock & Hanggai - When BACH Meets GENGHIS KHAN". Admission for the extension programme is free. Limited seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis with free seating.
"Tan Dun WE-Festival" is curated by Tan Dun, Hong Kong's ACP, also artistic director of the festival. Featuring musicians, dancers and ensembles from the Mainland, Hong Kong and around the world, this West-East artistic feast will reveal brand-new approaches to music, dance and visual arts, turning the city into an international stage for cultural and arts exchanges. The Festival will also attract people from both East and West to gather in the city, showcasing the essence of Hong Kong's East-meets-West cultural DNA. For more details, please visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/music/groups_1635.html.
Ends/Wednesday, November 29, 2023
Issued at HKT 10:30
Issued at HKT 10:30
NNNN
