STRAVINSKY AND TAN DUN expertly employs a variety of solo instruments to convey the song of the real nightingale ( flute , violin ), the mechanical nightingale ( flute , oboe , piccolo ), and the nightingale ’ s return to the Fisherman ( trumpet ).
Instrumentation Two flutes , two oboes , two clarinets , two bassoons , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , bass drum , cymbals ( pair ), tambourine , snare drum , tam-tam , triangle , two harps , celeste , piano , and strings .
Tan Dun
Born August 18 , 1957 in Changsha , China Resides in New York , New York
FIVE MUSES OF DUNHUANG ( U . S . PREMIERE )
[ 2022 ]
A major stop along the ancient Silk Road , Dunhuang is a city located in the Gansu Province of Western China . Just southeast of the city are the Mogao Caves , a series of ancient devotional caves that form a system of 500 temples . Some of the finest examples of Buddhist art spanning two millennia can be found in the caves , which were first dug in the fourth century as places for meditation and worship . Ultimately , the caves became an important pilgrimage destination and housed a critical library of manuscripts detailing religious and secular matters of Northern China and other Central Asian kingdoms from the Tang and early Song dynasty . Stunning devotional murals created between the fifth and fourteenth centuries line the cave walls .
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is pleased to perform the U . S . premiere of Tan Dun ’ s Five Muses of Dunhuang , a piece inspired by five ancient Chinese instruments depicted in the cave murals . Reviewed at its premiere as a work that “ conjures up images of the cultural melting pot that was the Silk Road ,” the composer writes that he hopes the piece will “ transport the audience to another world .” The five ancient instruments include the 1 ) chiba : a vertical end-blown flute that is one of the oldest Chinese woodwind instruments ; 2 ) five-string pipa : a plucked lute with a pear-shaped body and frets ; 3 ) xiqin : a string instrument played with a bamboo bow ; 4 ) bili : a double reed wind instrument with a cylindrical bore ; and 5 ) lusheng : a mouth organ with bamboo pipes fitted into a hardwood blowing tube .
Instrumentation Two piccolos , two clarinets , two bass clarinets , two contrabassoons , timpani , harp , bili , chiba , five-string pipa chiba , five-string pipa , xiqin , lusheng , and strings .
PASSACAGLIA : SECRET OF WIND AND BIRDS
[ 2015 ]
From its very origins , music-making has been rooted in the natural world — ancient instruments were created from organic materials and often tried to imitate sounds from nature . In Tan Dun ’ s Passacaglia : Secret of Wind and Birds , the composer suggests that perhaps only the wind and birds know the true secret of nature . When writing the piece , Tan Dun was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci ’ s assertion that “ in order to arrive at knowledge of the motions of birds in the air , it is first necessary to acquire knowledge of the winds , which we will prove by the motions of water .” In the piece , Tan Dun creates a soundscape where waves and water serve as a mirror to reveal the motions of the wind and birds .
Written for cell phone and orchestra , the piece explores the relationship between humankind and nature in the digital age . Tan Dun
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composed music reminiscent of birdsong , which was pre-recorded on six ancient Chinese instruments ( guzheng , suona , erhu , pipa , dizi , and sheng ). These recordings are played from cell phones during the performance by members of the orchestra and the audience , thereby turning cell phones into what Tan Dun describes as a “ poetic forest of digital birds .” Throughout the Passacaglia , Tan Dun seamlessly weaves together both Western and Chinese musical syntaxes . Passacaglias are typically created by repeating melodies and / or harmonies through a series of increasingly complex variations . In this piece , Tan Dun works with an eight-measure structure that is repeated and evolved nine times . The giant orchestral cry at the work ’ s conclusion is symbolic of the Phoenix .
Instrumentation Three flutes , three oboes , three clarinets , three bassoons , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , portable wireless speaker , bass drum , drum set , flexatone , snare drum , tam-tam , vibrahone , strones in pairs , bird whistle , waterphone , cymbals ( pair ), marimba , two harps , and strings .
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