Music Talks

Previously, we introduced Chinese chamber music, which is a type of music written for and performed by a small instrumental ensemble with one player on each part. An ensemble of this musical genre can be composed of different combinations of instruments.

Today, we continue with Ms Fan Weiqing and explore the nature and enchantment of Chinese chamber music. Ms Fan is a guzheng solo instrumentalist with the Central Broadcasting Traditional Instruments Orchestra and founder of “the Classic Impressions Ensemble”.

Song lists:

1. Lord of Western Chu, 西楚霸王

2. Late Night, 夜深沉

3. Reminiscence in Autumn, 妆台秋思

4. Classic Impression•Opera, 古典印象•戏

5. BGM: Mulan’s Reminiscence of the Combat, 木兰战意

May is finally here, and the summer begins in Beijing. Long days and short nights. So many things to look forward to in summer. Summer is a particularly good time of year to be exploring the great outdoors. If it wasn’t for the pandemic, many of us would be booking tickets for getaway travels or would already be on the way! Though it's uncertain when things will return to normal, we can surely embrace it and have faith that it is on the horizon. To help with that, today, let's enjoy a few songs that vividly depict this lively season.

SONG LISTS:

0. BGM: Peaceful Summer宁夏，by Zhang Lu

1. Summer Begins立夏, by Lao Luo and Gong Linna

2. Summer Palace夏季皇宫, by Kong Hongwei & 'Golden Buddha Band'

3. Romantic Prairie浪漫草原, by He Xige

4. Summer镜花水月 夏, by Wu Tong

5. Stand As One

May Day or Labor Day celebrates workers’ contributions to the country. Usually, most people in China would go on travel during the holiday. Hopefully some short day trips are available to you or at least a photo album of some special times. Sometimes, it is nice to reflect, especially with the right soundtrack.

Wherever you are right now listening to our show, at home or on the road, we would like to invite you to travel with us in today’s music.

Earlier, we’ve introduced to you Ms Zhao Cong, the renowned principle pipa player with the China National Traditional Orchestra. Today, we handpick six pieces from her albums that are relevant to certain places or scenery in the country.

For those of you listening in outside of China, let’s see where you go in these melodies.

Song lists:

1. A Moonlit Night on the Spring River, 春江花月夜

2. Shanghai Nights, 夜上海

3. Saddle up and Run the Horse, 放马山歌

4. What the Pipa Says, 琵琶语

5. Blue Sky and Fluffy Clouds, 天高云淡

6. Raise up the Flag, 红旗升

Wu Tong is one of China's most talented and successful crossover musicians. His music traverse between traditional and modern, national and classic, hard and soft. Today, Mr Wu talks about his inspirations behind the new song, ‘Ten Thousand Miles of Tea’. Also, Wu and his Silk Road Ensemble bring us 'Water Way' and share its origin story.

Song Lists:

1. BGM: Sound of the Sheng 笙音, by Wu Tong(吴彤)

2. The Flames of Yangzhou Road 烽火扬州路, by Wu Tong(吴彤), Lunhui Rock Band

3. Ten Thousand Miles of Tea 万里茶道

Lyrics: Yuan Zhen (元稹)

Composer/Vocalist/Sheng: Wu Tong (吴彤)

Arranger/Keyboard: Fu Lei (傅雷)

Remix: Fu Peng (付鹏)

Cello: Irina Solinas

Oud: Huda H.M.Asfour lina

Tabla: Sandeep Das

Bagpipe: Anxo Lois Garcia Pintos

Morin Khuur: 包·额尔敦毕力格

Guitar: Zhao Wei(赵卫)，Shi Lei(石磊)

Bass: Jia Wenkai (贾文恺)

Drum: Song Pengjie (宋鹏杰)

4. Water Way, by Wu Tong, Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble

5. Going Home, by Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, Vocal: Abigail Washburn, Wu Tong

Chinese instruments have incredible expressivity when they are played in solo.

What chemistry will it produce if some of them are played together?

Today, let's get up-close and personal with Chinese chamber music, with Ms Fan Weiqing, the guzheng solo player with the Central Broadcasting Traditional Instruments Orchestra and founder of the “Classic Impressions Ensemble”, and see where the music takes you.

Song lists:

1. Classical Impressions, 古典印象, by the Classic Impressions Ensemble

2. Mulan’s Reminiscence of the Combat, 木兰战意, by the Classic Impressions Ensemble

3. Peace of Mind, 悠然, by the Classic Impressions Ensemble

4. The Spirit of the Swords, 剑器, by the Classic Impressions Ensemble

5. BGM: Dream back to Hometown, 梦回故乡, by Zhu Jianping 朱剑平；Hearing the Snowflake Falling, 听雪, by the Classic Impressions Ensemble

Previously, we talked about the sheng, which is a Chinese traditional free-reed instrument and enjoyed some musical pieces from Wu Tong, a predominant sheng musician. Suitable for just about any emotion, its expression has a long-range of moods that it compliments and is said to be graceful and soothing by many. Today, let’s follow more of Wu‘s sheng melodies and journey through the four seasons.

Song Lists:

1. BGM: Sound of the Sheng, by Wu Tong《笙音》吴彤

2. Spring, by Wu Tong《镜花水月 春》吴彤

3. Summer, by Wu Tong《镜花水月 夏》吴彤

4. Autumn and Winter, by Wu Tong《镜花水月 秋冬》吴彤

5. Tranquil Snow, by Wu Tong《静雪》吴彤

6. Spring Breeze, by Yoyo Ma, Wu Tong《望春风》马友友 吴彤

The pipa is a traditional Chinese lute, with over 2000 years of history.

Reputed as "the king of Chinese classical instruments", the pear-shaped plucked instrument is famous for its strong expressivity, as well as intricate and delicate tonality. It is able to depict calamity and also has the potential to display an enchanting and delicate ambience.

In this episode, we handpicked four remarkable pieces from Zhao Cong’s album. Ms Zhao is a renowned principle pipa player with the China National Traditional Orchestra.

Let’s experience how the pipa tells stories through music.

Song lists:

1. Ambush on all Sides, 十面埋伏

2. New Version of Ambush on all Sides, 新编十面埋伏

3. Flying Fairies of the Silk Road, 丝路飞天

4. How the pipa sings, 琵琶吟

Chinese poems had been the inspiration of many renowned guzheng musical pieces.

Today, we will hear some classics of the zither selected from Ms Yuan Sha’s album. By giving brief introductions to the poems’ background, we hope it’ll be helpful in bringing you closer to the culture beyond music. Ms Yuan is a celebrated guzheng instrumentalist and associate professor with the Central Conservatory of Music.

Song lists:

1. Peacocks Flies Southeast, 孔雀东南飞

2. Phoenix Hairpin, 钗头凤

3. A Moonlit Night on the Spring River, 春江花月夜

4. The River All Red, 满江红

The Sheng is a Chinese traditional free-reed instrument. It's capable of beautifying the sound of other devices when played in sync. When in solo, either for happiness or sorrow, the expression of the sheng has been graceful, temperate, and soothing, which is said to melt a listener's heart.

Wu Tong, who was previously an excellent singer of a renowned rock band, is a predominant sheng musician. In this episode, we handpicked for you beautiful sheng pieces from Mr. Wu's albums.

Song List:

1. Sound of the Sheng, 笙音 by Wu Tong

2. Far Mountain, 远山 by Wu Tong

3. Cloud Harmony, 云和 by Wu Tong

4. Spring Breeze, 望春风 by Wu Tong & Yoyo Ma

Previously, we have explored different regional styles of the guzheng from the south, southeast and central China. Naturally, you might have been able to hear a slight distinction between these styles since they differ in culture, dialect, and tone. Today, Ms Fan Weiqing, a guzheng solo player from the Central Broadcasting Traditional Instruments Orchestra, brings us some of her musical pieces to show us the uniqueness of the Hakka styles from the southern, northwestern and eastern parts of China.

Song lists:

1. Rhythmic Raindrops on Banana Leaves 蕉窗夜雨

2. Kingfisher Diving into Pond 翡翠登潭

3. Yun Shangsu云裳诉

4. The Song of Mulberry in Qin秦桑曲

5. Autumn Moon over Han Palace 汉宫秋月

6. BGM: What the Pipa Says 琵琶词